J.  OERMAN 

OCT  3  0 1938 


dERMAN 

OCT301938 


OF  CALIF.  LIBOfflY,  IDS 


Frontispiece—  Caps  and  Capers. 

"NOW,   GIRLS,   COME  ON!    LET'S   EAT   OUR    CREAM." 

See  p.  92. 


CAPS  AND  CAPERS 


A   Story  of  Boarding-School  Life 


by 

GABRIELLE  E.  JACKSON 


Author  of  "  Pretty  Polly  Perkins," 
" Demise  and  Ned  Toodles,"  "By  Love's 
Sweet  Rule,"  "The  Colburn  Prize" 
etc.,  etc. 


With  illustrations 

by  C.   M.   RELYEA 


P      H      I      LAD      ELPHIA 
HENRY      ALTEMUS       COMPANY 


Copyright,  1901,  by  Henry  Altemus. 


10 

THE  DEAR  GIRLS  OP   "DWIQHT  SCHOOL," 
WHO,  BY  THEIR  SWEET  FRIENDSHIP, 

HAVE  UNCONSCIOUSLY 
HELPED  TO  MAKE  THIS  WINTER 

ONE  OP  THE 

HAPPIEST  SHE  HAS  EVER  KNOWN, 

THIS  LITTLE  STORY  IS  MOST 

AFFECTIONATELY 

INSCRIBED 

BY  THE 

AUTHOR. 


2130770 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAGB 

I.    WHICH  SHALL  IT  BE? 13 

II.  "A  TOUCH  CAN  MAKE  OR  A  TOUCH  CAN  MAR"   .      21 

III.  "A  FEELING  OF  SADNESS  AND  LONGING"        .        .      29 

IV.  NEW  EXPERIENCES 41 

V.    Two  SIDES  OF  A  QUESTION 53 

VI.    DULL  AND  PROSY 63 

VII.    THE  P.  U.  L 71 

VIII.    CAPS  AND  CAPERS 81 

IX.    A  MODERN  DIOGENES 89 

X.  "THEY  COULD  NEVER  DECEIVE  ME"     ...      97 

XI.      "  LA  SOMNAMBULA  " 107 

XII.  "HAVE  You  NOT  BEEN  DECEIVED  THIS  TIME?"  .     119 

XIII.  ENGLISH  AS  SHE  is  SPELLED 127 

XIV.  "  JINGLE  BELLS  !  JINGLE  BELLS  !  "  .        .       .        .135 
XV.  "  PRIDE  GOETH  BEFORE  A  FALL  "   .        .        .        .    143 

XVI.    LETTERS 153 

XVII.  "HAF  ANYBODY  SEEN  MY  UMBREL?"    .        .        .161 

XVIII.    THE  LITTLE  HINGE 169 

XIX.  "FATAL  OR  FATED  ARE  MOMENTS  .       .       .       .179 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XX.  "  Now  TREAD  WE  A  MEASURE     .       .       .       .187 

XXI.  CONSPIRATORS 197 

XXII.  "  WE 'VE  GOT 'EM  !   WE' VE  GOT 'EM!  "         .        .    205 

XXIII.  A  CAMERA'S  CAPERS '.    213 

XXIV.  WHISPERS 225 

XXV.  "WHAT   ARK   You   DOING   UP   THIS    TIME    OF 

NIGHT?" 233 

XXVI.    "LOVE  (AND  SCHOOLGIRLS)   LAUGHS  AT   LOCK- 
SMITHS"        243 

XXVII.    ARIADNE'S  CLUE    .       .       .       .       .       .       .  253 

XXVIII.      "WHEN  BUDS  AND  BLOSSOMS   BURST"  .          .     261 

XXIX.    COMMENCEMENT .    271 

XXX.    "O  FORTUNATE,  O  HAPPY  DAY!"       .       .       .279 
xo 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


FAGS 

"  Now,  girls,  come  on  !  let 's  eat  our  cream  "    Frontispiece. 
"  You  could  have  popped  me  over  from  ambush  "    .        .      37 
"Do  you  wish  to  join  the  P.  U.  L.  ?  "     .        .        .        .      75 
"Go,  tell  Mrs.  Stone  she  is  n't  up  to  snuff"    .        .        .115 

"Sthick  to  yer  horses,  Moik" 149 

"Let  us  begin  a  brand  new  leaf  to-day"  .  .  •  .  175 
"  I  feel  so  sort  of  grown  up  and  grand  "  .  •  •  .  193 
"An'  have  ye  been  in  there  all  this  toime  ?"  .  .  .  220 
"Away  went  Marie,  vanishing  bit  by  bit "  ...  247 
"  Her  hand  resting  lightly  on  the  arm  of  her  friend  "  .  285 

ii 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 


CHAPTER  I 
WHICH   SHALL   IT   BE? 

ND  now  that  I  have  them,  how  am  I 
to  decide  ?    That  is  the  question  ?  " 

The  speaker  was  a  fine-looking  man 
about  thirty-five  years  of  age,  seated  before  a 
large  writing-table  in  a  handsomely  appointed 
library.  It  was  littered  with  catalogues,  pam- 
phlets, letters  and  papers  sent  from  dozens  of 
schools,  and  from  the  quantity  of  them  one 
would  fancy  that  every  school  in  the  country 
was  represented.  This  was  the  result  of  an  ad- 
vertisement in  the  "  Times "  for  a  school  in 
which  young  children  are  received,  carefully 
trained,  thoroughly  taught,  and  which  can  fur- 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

nish  unquestionable  references  regarding  its  so- 
cial standing  and  other  qualifications. 

It  was  a  handsome,  but  seriously  perplexed, 
face  which  bent  over  the  letters,  and  more  than 
once  the  shapely  hand  was  raised  to  the  puckered 
forehead  and  the  fingers  thrust  impatiently 
through  the  golden  brown  hair,  setting  it  on  end 
and  causing  its  owner  to  look  more  distracted 
than  ever. 

"Poor,  wee  lassie,  you  little  realize  what  a 
problem  you  are  to  me.  Would  to  God  the  one 
best  qualified  to  solve  it  could  have  been  spared 
to  you,"  and  the  handsome  head  fell  forward 
upon  the  hands,  as  tears  of  bitter  anguish  flooded 
the  brown  eyes. 

Can  anything  be  more  pathetic  than  a  strong 
man's  tears  ?  And  Clayton  Reeve's  were  wrung 
from  an  almost  despairing  heart. 

For  ten  years  his  life  had  been  a  dream  of 
happiness.  At  twenty-five  he  had  married  a 
beautiful,  talented  girl,  who  made  his  home  as 

nearly  perfect  as  a  home  can  be  made,  and  when, 

14 


WHICH    SHALL    IT    BE? 

three  years  later,  a  little  daughter,  her  mother's 
living  image,  came  to  live  with  them,  he  felt  that 
he  had  no  more  to  ask  for.  Seven  years  slipped 
away,  as  only  years  of  perfect  happiness  can  slip, 
and  then  came  the  end.  The  beautiful  wife  and 
mother  went  to  sleep  forever,  leaving  the  dear 
husband  and  lovely  little  daughter  alone.  For 
six  months  Mr.  Reeve  strove  to  fill  the  mother's 
place,  but  until  she  was  taken  from  him  he  had 
never  realized  how  perfectly  and  completely  his 
almost  idolized  wife  had  filled  his  home,  con- 
ducting all  so  quietly  and  gracefully  that  even  . 
those  nearest  and  dearest  never  suspected  how 
much  thought  she  had  given  to  their  comfort 
until  her  firm,  yet  gentle,  rule  was  missed. 

Happily,  Toinette  was  too  young  to  fully 
appreciate  her  loss,  and  although  she  grieved  in 
her  childish  way  for  the  sweet,  smiling  mother 
who  had  so  loved  her,  it  was  a  child's  blessed 
evanescent  grief,  which  could  find  consolation 
in  her  pets  and  dollies,  and — blessed  boon — 
forget. 

'5 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

But  Clayton  Reeve  never  forgot,  not  for  one 
moment ;  and  though  the  six  months  had  in  a 
measure  softened  his  grief,  his  sense  of  loss  and 
loneliness  increased  each  day,  until  at  last  he 
could  no  longer  endure  the  sight  of  the  home 
which  they  together  had  planned  and  beautified. 

Unfortunately,  neither  he  nor  his  wife  had 
near  relatives.  She  had  been  an  only  child 
whose  parents  had  died  shortly  after  her  mar- 
riage, and  such  distant  relatives  as  remained  to 
him  were  far  away  in  England,  his  native  land. 
•'  His  greatest  problem  was  the  little  daughter. 
Nursemaids  and  nursery-governesses  were  to  be 
had  by  the  score,  but  nursemaids  and  nursery- 
governesses  were  one  thing  with  a  mistress  at 
the  head  of  the  household  and  quite  another 
without  one,  as,  during  the  past  six  months,  Mr. 
Reeve  had  learned  to  his  sorrow,  and  the  poor 
man  had  more  than  once  been  driven  to  the  verge 
of  insanity  by  their  want  of  thought,  or  even 
worse. 

At  last  he  determined  to  close  his  house,  place 
16 


WHICH    SHALL    IT    BE? 

Toinette  in  some  "  ideal  "  school,  and  travel  for 
six  months,  or  even  longer,  little  dreaming  that 
the  six  months  would  lengthen  into  as  many 
years  ere  he  again  saw  her.  The  trip  begun  for 
diversion  was  soon  merged  into  one  for  business 
interests,  as  the  prominent  law  firm  of  which  he 
was  a  member  had  matters  of  importance  to  be 
looked  after  upon  the  other  side  of  the  water, 
and  were  only  too  glad  to  have  so  efficient  a 
person  to  do  it. 

So,  before  he  realized  it,  half  the  globe  divided 
him  from  the  sunny-haired  little  daughter  whom 
he  had  placed  in  the  supposed  ideal  school, 
chosen  after  deliberate  consideration  from  those 
he  had  corresponded  with. 

But  this  anticipates  a  trifle. 

As  he  sits  in  the  library  of  his  big  house,  a 
house  which  seems  so  like  some  beautiful  instru- 
ment lacking  the  touch  of  the  master  hand  to 
draw  forth  its  sweetest  and  best,  the  sound  of 
little  dancing  feet  can  be  heard  through  the  half- 
open  door,  and  a  sweet  little  voice  calls  out : 

17 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Papa,  Papa  Clayton.  Where  is  my  precious 
Daddy?"  and  a  golden-haired  child  running 
into  the  room  throws  herself  into  his  arms,  clasps 
her  own  about  his  neck  and  nestles  her  head 
upon  his  shoulder. 

He  held  her  close  as  he  asked  : 

"  Well,  little  Heart's-Ease,  what  can  the  old 
Daddy  do  for  you  ?  " 

The  child  raised  her  head,  and,  looking  at  him 
with  her  big  brown  eyes,  eyes  so  like  his  own, 
said,  reproachfully:  "You  are  not  an  old  Daddy; 
Stanton  (the  butler)  is  old,  you  are  just  my  own, 
own  Papa  Clayton,  and  mamma  used  to  say  that 
you  could  n't  grow  old  'cause  she  and  I  loved 
you  so  hard." 

Mr.  Reeve  quivered  slightly  at  the  child's 
words,  and  with  a  surprised  look  she  asked : 

"Are  you  cold,  dear  Daddy  ?  It  is  n't  cold 
here,  is  it?" 

"  No,  not  in  the  room,  Heart's-Ease,  but  right 
here,"  laying  his  hand  upon  his  heart. 

18 


WHICH    SHALL    IT    BE? 

The  child  regarded  him  questioningly  with 
her  big,  earnest  eyes,  and  said  : 

"Did  it  grow  cold  because  mamma  went  so 
sound  asleep  ?  " 

"  I  'm  afraid  so ;  but  now  let  us  talk  about 
something  else :  I  've  some  news  for  you,  but  do 
not  know  how  you  will  like  it ;  sit  still  while  I 
tell  it  to  you,"  and  he  began  to  unfold  his  plan 
regarding  the  school. 

19 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  school  was  chosen  and  Toinette  placed 
therein.  What  momentous  results  often 
follow  a  simple  act.  When  Clayton 
Reeve  placed  his  little  girl  with  the  Misses 
Carter,  intending  to  leave  her  there  a  few 
months,  and  seek  the  change  of  scene  so  essen- 
tial to  his  health,  he  did  not  realize  that  her 
whole  future  would  be  more  or  less  influenced 
by  the  period  she  was  destined  to  spend  there. 
No  brighter,  sunnier,  happier  disposition  could 
have  been  met  with  than  Toinette's  when  she 
entered  the  school ;  none  more  restless,  dis- 
trustful and  dissatisfied  than  her's  when  she  left 
it,  nearly  six  years  later. 

If  we  are  held  accountable  for  sins  of  omis- 

2 — Caps  and  Captrt.  2  j 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

sion,  as  well  as  sins  of  commission,  certainly  the 
Misses  Carter  had  a  long  account  to  meet. 

Like  many  others  who  had  chosen  that  voca- 
tion^ they  were  utterly  incapable  of  filling  it 
either  to  their  own  credit  or  the  advantage  of 
those  they  taught.  While  perfectly  capable  of 
imparting  the  knowledge  they  had  obtained 
from  books,  and  of  making  any  number  of  rules 
to  be  followed  as  those  of  the  "  Medes  and  Per- 
sians," they  did  not,  in  the  very  remotest  degree, 
possess  the  insight  into  character,  the  sympathy 
with  their  pupils  so  essential  in  true  teachers. 

It  is  not  alone  to  learn  that  which  is  contained 
between  the  covers  of  a  book  that  our  girls  are 
sent  to  school  or  college,  but  also  to  gather  in 
the  thousand  and  one  things  untaught  by  either 
books  or  words.  These  must  be  absorbed  as  the 
flowers  absorb  the  sunshine  and  dew,  growing 
lovelier,  sweeter  and  more  attractive  each  day 
and  never  suspecting  it. 

And  so  the  shaping  of  Toinette's  character,  so 
beautifully  begun  by  the  wise,  gentle  mother, 


22 


A    TOUCH    CAN    MAKE    OR    MAR 

passed  into  other  and  less  sensitive  hands.  It 
was  like  a  delicate  bit  of  pottery,  the  pride  of 
the  potter's  heart,  upon  which  he  had  spent  un- 
countable hours,  and  was  fashioning  so  skilfully, 
almost  fearing  to  touch  it  lest  he  mar  instead  of 
add  to  its  beauty ;  dreading  to  let  others  approach 
lest,  lacking  his  own  nice  conceptions,  they  bring 
about  a  result  he  had  so  earnestly  sought  to  avoid, 
and  the  vase  lose  its  perfect  symmetry.  But, 
alas !  called  from  his  work  never  to  return,  it  is 
completed  by  less  skilful  hands,  a  less  delicate 
conception,  and,  while  the  result  is  pleasing,  the 
perfect  harmony  of  proportion  is  wanting,  and 
those  who  see  it  feel  conscious  of  its  incomplete- 
ness, yet  scarcely  know  why. 
^_We  will  skip  over  those  six  miserable  years, 
so  fraught  with  small  trials,  jealousies,  deceptions 
and  an  ever-increasing  distrust,  to  a  certain  Satur- 
day morning  in  December. 

The  early  winter  had  been  an  exceptionally 
trying  one,  and  Toinette,  now  nearly  fourteen 
years  old,  had  seen  and  learned  many  things 

23 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

which  can  only  be  taught  by  experience.  She 
had  seen  that  in  some  people's  eyes  the  posses- 
sion of  money  can  atone  for  many  shortcomings  in 
character,  and  that  certain  lines  of  conduct  may 
be  condoned  in  a  girl  who  has  means,  while  they 
are  condemned  in  a  girl  who  has  not ;  that 
she  herself  had  many  liberties  and  many  favors 
shown  her  which  were  denied  some  of  her  com- 
panions, although  those  companions  were  quite 
as  well  born  and  bred  as  herself,  and  with  all  the 
latent  nobility  of  her  character  did  she  scorn  not 
only  the  favors  but  those  who  showed  them,  and 
often  said  to  her  roommate,  Cicely  Powell :  "  If 
/  chose  to  steal  the  very  Bible  out  of  chapel, 
Miss  Carter  would  only  say,  '  Naughty  Toinette/ 
in  that  smirking  way  of  hers,  and  then  never  do 
a  single  thing ;  but  if  Barbara  Ellsworth  even 
looks  sideways  she  simply  annihilates  her.  I 
hate  it,  for  it  is  only  because  Barbara  is  poor 
and  I  'm — well,  Miss  Carter  likes  to  have  the 
income  I  yield ;  I  'm  a  profitable  bit  of  '  stock,' 

24 


A    TOUCH    CAN    MAKE    OR    MAR 

and  must  be  well  cared  for,"  and  a  burning  flush 
rose  to  the  girl's  sensitive  cheeks. 

It  was  a  bitter  speech  for  one  so  young,  and 
argued  an  all  too  intimate  acquaintance  with 
those  who  did  not  bear  the  mark  patent  of 
"  gentlewoman." 

The  six  years  had  wrought  many  changes  in 
the  little  child,  both  in  mind  and  body,  for,  even 
though  one  had  been  cramped,  and  lacked  a 
healthful  development,  the  other  had  blossomed 
into  a  very  beautiful  young  girl,  who  would  have 
gladdened  any  parent's  heart.  She  was  neither 
tall  nor  short,  but  beautifully  proportioned.  Her 
head,  with  its  wealth  of  sunny,  wavy  hair,  was 
carried  in  the  same  stately  manner  which  had 
always  been  so  marked  a  characteristic  in  her 
father,  and  gave  to  her  a  rather  dignified  and 
reserved  air  for  her  years.  The  big  brown  eyes 
looked  you  squarely  in  the  face,  although  latterly 
they  had  a  slightly  distrustful  expression. 
Hurry  home,  Clayton  Reeve,  before  it  becomes 
habitual.  The  nose  was  straight  and  sensitive, 

25 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

and  the  mouth  the  saving  grace  of  the  face,  for 
nothing  could  alter  its  soft,  beautiful  curves,  and 
the  lips  continued  to  smile  as  they  had  done  in 
early  childhood,  when  there  was  cause  for  smiles 
only.  The  mother's  finger  seemed  to  rest  there, 
all  invisible  to  others,  and  curve  the  corners  up- 
ward, as  though  in  apology  for  the  hardened 
expression  gradually  creeping  over  the  rest  of 
the  face. 

It  is  difficult  to  understand  how  a  parent  can 
leave  a  child  wholly  to  the  care  of  strangers  for 
so  long  a  period  as  Mr.  Reeve  left  Toinette,  but 
one  thing  after  another  led  him  further  and 
further  from  home,  first  to  Southern  Europe, 
then  across  the  Mediterranean  into  wilder, 
newer  scenes,  where  nations  were  striving 
mightily.  Then,  just  as  he  began  to  think  that 
ere  long  his  own  land  would  welcome  him,  news 
reached  him  of  trouble  in  a  land  still  nearer 
the  rising  sun,  and  his  firm  needed  their  interests 
in  that  far  land  carefully  guarded.  So  thither 

he  journeyed.      But   at   last  all  was  adjusted, 

26 


A    TOUCH    CAN    MAKE    OR    MAR 

and,  with  a  heart  beating  high  with  hope,  he 
started  for  his  own  dear  land  and  dearer 
daughter. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  he  had  many  con- 
flicting emotions  as  the  great  ship  plowed  its 
way  across  the  broad  Pacific,  and  ample  time  in 
which  to  indulge  them.  Many  were  the  mental 
pictures  he  drew  of  the  girl  there  awaiting  him, 
and  would  have  felt  no  little  surprise,  as  well  as 
indignation,  could  he  have  known  that  she  was 
left  in  ignorance  of  the  date  of  his  arrival.  But 
Miss  Carter  had  reasons  of  her  own  for  conceal- 
ing it,  and  had  merely  told  Toinette  that  her 
father  was  contemplating  a  return  to  the  States 
during  the  coming  year.  It  seemed  rather  a 
cold  message  to  the  girl  whose  all  he  was,  for 
she  had  written  to  him  repeatedly,  and  poured 
out  in  her  letters  all  the  suppressed  warmth  of 
her  nature,  yet  never  had  his  replies  touched 
upon  the  subject  of  her  loneliness  and  intense 
desire  to  see  him,  but  had  always  assured  her 

that  he  was   delighted  to  know  that  she  was 

27 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

happy  and  fond  of  her  teachers.  And  Toinette 
had  not  quite  reached  the  age  of  wisdom  which 
caused  her  to  suspect  why  he  gave  so  little  heed 
to  such  information,  although  it  would  not  have 
required  a  much  longer  residence  at  the  Misses 
Carter's  to  enlighten  her.  Happily,  before  the 
revelation  was  made  she  was  beyond  further 
chicanery. 

28 


CHAPTER  III 
"A  FEELING   OP  SADNESS   AND   LONGING  " 

THE  half  year  was  nearly  ended,  and  most 
of  the  girls  were  looking  eagerly  forward 
to  the  Christmas  vacation,  which  would 
release  them  from  a  cordially  detested  surveil- 
lance.    But  Toinette  had  no  release  to  look  for- 
ward to ;  vacation  or  term  time  were  much  the 
same  to  her.     She  had  spent  some  of  her  holi- 
days with  her  schoolmates,  but  the  greater  part 
of  them  had  been  passed  in  the  school,  and  dull 
enough  they  were,  too. 

The  past  week  had  been  a  particularly  stormy 
one,  and  the  outcome  had  reflected  anything  but 
credit  upon  the  school.  Consequently,  the  girls 
were  out  of  sorts  and  miserable,  and  the  world 
looked  decidedly  blue,  with  only  a  faint  rosy 

29 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

tint  far  down  in  the  horizon,  where  vacation 
peeped. 

As  in  most  schools,  Saturday  was  a  holiday. 
The  day  was  wonderfully  soft  and  mild  for 
December,  and  shortly  after  breakfast  Toinette 
threw  her  golf-cape  about  her  shoulders  and 
stepped  out  upon  the  piazza  to  see  if  the  fresh 
air  would  blow  away  the  mental  vapors  hovering 
about  her,  for  she  felt  not  unlike  a  ship  at  sea 
without  a  compass.  Poor  little  lassie,  although 
what  might  be  called  a  rich  girl,  in  one  respect 
she  was  a  very  poor  one  indeed,  for  she  had 
scarcely  known  the  influence  of  a  happy  home, 
or  the  tender  mother  love  which  we  all  need, 
whether  we  be  big  daughters  or  little  ones. 
True,  she  had  never  known  what  it  meant  to 
want  those  things  which  girls  often  wish  to  have, 
but  which  limited  means  place  beyond  their 
reach.  But  often  amidst  the  luxuries  of  her 
surroundings,  for  her  father  provided  most  liber- 
ally for  her,  she  would  be  seized  with  a  restless 
longing  for  something,  she  hardly  knew  what, 

30 


A  FEELING  OF  SADNESS  AND  LONGING 

which  made  her  feel  out  of  sorts  with  herself 
and  everybody  else. 

"What  ails  you,  this  morning?"  asked  her 
chum,  Cicely  Powell,  joining  her  upon  the 
piazza.  "  You  look  as  solemn  as  an  oyster,  and 
I  should  think  you  'd  feel  jolly  because  it 's 
Saturday,  and  that  horrid  Grace  Thatcher  won't 
be  here  to  poke  her  inquisitive  nose  into  all  our 
plans,"  referring  to  the  prime  mischief-maker  of 
the  school,  already  departed  for  her  vacation, 
with  the  admonition  to  think  twice  before  re- 
turning. 

"  I  don't  know  what  's  the  matter  with  me : 
I  wish  I  did.  Somehow,  I  don't  feel  satisfied 
with  myself  or  anyone  else,  and  I  half  believe  I 
hate  everybody,"  was  Toinette's  petulant  reply. 

"  Well,  I  like  that,  I  declare !  "  was  the  sharp 
retort.  "  Perhaps  you  include  me  among  those 
you  hate,  and  if  that  is  the  case,  Toinette  Reeve, 
you  may  just  do  as  you  like ;  /  don't  care  a 
straw." 

Ordinarily  Toinette's  reply  would  have  been 
3' 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

as  sharp  as  Cicely's,  but  this  time  she  just  looked 
at  her  with  her  big  eyes — eyes  suspiciously 
bright,  as  though  tears  lay  not  far  back  of 
them — and  walked  away,  leaving  Cicely  to 
wonder  what  had  come  over  her. 

"  Well,  I  never !  "  was  her  rather  vague  com- 
ment. "  I  don't  see  what  has  come  over  Toinette 
since  that  last  flareup.  Mercy  knows,  we  've 
had  so  many  that  we  all  ought  to  be  used  to 
them  by  this  time.  She  has  acted  as  though 
she  were  sorry  that  that  horrid  Grace  was  sent 
off  earlier  than  the  others,  and  I  'm  sure  she  has 
as  much  reason  to  be  glad  of  it  as  any  of  us 
have.  She  did  nothing  but  tell  tales  about  all 
of  us,  and  peep  and  spy  upon  her  more  than 
anyone  else.  Miss  Carter  would  never  have 
found  out  about  half  the  things  she  did  if  it 
had  n't  been  for  Grace,  and  we  could  have  had 
no  end  of  fun,"  and  after  this  rather  prolonged 
monologue  Cicely  went  to  join  the  other  girls. 

Meanwhile  Toinette  had  drawn  the  hood  of 
her  cape  over  her  head  and  strolled  down  to  the 

32 


A  FEELING   OF  SADNESS  AND  LONGING 

lower  end  of  the  garden,  where  a  rustic  summer- 
house  not  far  from  the  gate  afforded  a  quiet  little 
nook  in  which  to  indulge  one's  fancies,  whether 
pleasant  or  painful.  Curling  herself  up  in  one 
corner,  she  rested  her  cheek  upon  her  arm,  which 
she  had  thrown  over  the  railing,  and  looked 
down  the  road  toward  the  railway  station. 

Although  a  very  beautiful  one,  it  was  a  sad, 
wistful  young  face  which  turned  toward  the  sun- 
shine and  shadows  dancing  upon  the  road. 
Poor  little  Toinette,  now  is  the  moment  in  which 
the  mother-love  you  are  unconsciously  longing 
for  would  make  the  world  anew  for  you.  If, 
as  you  sit  there,  a  gentle  form  and  face  could 
creep  up  quietly,  slip  an  arm  about  your  waist 
as  she  takes  her  seat  beside  you,  and  ask  in  the 
tender  tone  that  only  mothers  use:  "Well, 
Sweetheart,  what  is  troubling  you?  Tell  mother 
all  about  it,  and  let  us  see  if  there  is  not  a  sunny 
lining  to  the  dark  cloud  that  is  casting  its  un- 
pleasant shadow  over  this  cozy  nook." 

Where  is  the  daughter  who  could  resist  it? 
33 


It  would  not  be  many  minutes  before  the  head 
would  find  a  happy  resting-place  upon  the 
shoulder  beside  it,  and  all  the  little  trials  and 
troubles — trials  so  very  real  and  very  appalling 
to  young  hearts — would  be  put  into  words,  and 
lose  half  their  bitterness  in  the  telling  just  be- 
cause love — that  mighty  magician — had  come  to 
help  bear  them. 

A  great  man  once  said :  "  O  opportunity,  thy 
guilt  is  great ! "  and  I  have  often  wondered  why 
he  did  not  add,  "or  thou  art  very  precious." 
So  much  depends  upon  an  auspicious  moment. 
A  big  door  can  swing  upon  a  very  small 
hinge. 

As  Toinette  looked  down  the  road  with  un- 
seeing eyes,  the  whistle  of  an  incoming  train 
brought  her  back  to  a  realization  of  things 
around  her.  The  station  was  barely  half  a  mile 
away,  and  ere  ten  minutes  had  passed  a  man 
appeared  in  the  distance.  Evidently  the  owner 
of  that  athletic  figure  knew  where  he  was  bound, 
and  was  going  to  get  there  as  quickly  as  his  firm, 

34 


A   FEELING  OF  SADNESS  AND  LONGING 

long  strides  could  carry  him.  He  was  a  large 
man,  sun-burned  to  the  point  of  duskiness, 
bearded  and  moustached  as  though  barbers  were 
unknown  in  the  land  from  which  he  hailed. 
Dressed  in  servicable  tweed  knickerbockers  and 
Norfolk  jacket,  his  Alpine  hat  placed  upon  his 
head  to  stay  put,  his  grip  slung  by  a  strap  across 
his  broad  shoulders,  he  came  striding  over  the 
ground  as  though  intent  upon  very  important 
business.  Toinette  watched  his  approach  in  a 
listless  sort  of  way,  but  as  he  drew  nearer  and 
nearer  seemed  to  recognize  something  familiar. 

"  Who  can  he  be,  and  where  have  I  seen  him, 
I  wonder  ?  "  she  said,  half  aloud,  as  she  peered 
at  him  from  behind  the  lattice-work  of  the 
summer-house. 

On  he  came,  quite  unconscious  of  the  big  eyes 
regarding  him  so  intently,  and  presently  stopped 
to  look  about  him,  as  though  trying  to  recall  old 
landmarks.  He  now  stood  almost  opposite 
Toinette,  when,  chancing  to  glance  toward  the 
house,  he  became  aware  of  her  presence. 

35 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Why,  little  lady,  you  could  have  popped  me 
over  from  ambush  if  you  had  had  a  gun,  for  I 
walked  straight  upon  you  and  never  suspected 
that  you  were  there.  Can  you  direct  me  to  the 
Misses  Carter's  school  ?  The  station-master  said 
it  was  about  ten  minutes'  walk,  but  it  is  so  many 
years  since  I  have  been  here  that  I  find  I  've 
forgotten  the  lay  of  the  land,  and  I  don't  want 
to  waste  much  time,  for  I  've  a  very  precious 
somebody  there  whom  I  'm  very  anxious  to  see. 
Last  time  I  saw  her  she  was  only  about  knee- 
high  to  a  grasshopper,  but  I  suspect  I  shall  find 
a  young  lady  now,  and  have  to  be  introduced  to 
her." 

At  the  sound  of  his  voice  Toinette  arose  to  her 
feet,  her  color  coming  and  going,  and  her  heart 
beating  so  loudly  that  she  was  sure  he  could 
hear  it.  As  he  finished  speaking  he  regarded 
with  very  genuine  surprise  the  young  girl  who, 
with  parted  lips  and  outstretched  hands,  was 
walking  toward  him  like  one  who  doubted  the 
evidence  of  her  own  senses,  and  with  a  cry  of, 

36 


A  FEELING   OF  SADNESS   AND  LONGING 

"  Papa  !  oh,  papa  !  don't  you  know  me  ?  "  she 
was  gathered  into  the  strong  arms  whose  owner 
had  travelled  half  around  the  globe  in  order  to 
win  that  one  precious  moment. 

3— Cap*  and  Coders.  39 


I 


CHAPTER   IV 
NEW   EXPERIENCES 

T  did  not  take  Clayton  Reeve  very  long  to 
gain  a  pretty  clear  idea  of  the  condition  of 
things  at  the  Misses  Carter's  school,  or  to 
realize  what  influences  had  been  brought  to  bear 
upon  his  only  daughter.  To  say  that  he  was 
keenly  disappointed  but  mildly  expresses  it,  and 
he  reproached  himself  bitterly  for  having  left 
her  so  long  to  the  care  of  strangers.  He  re- 
mained with  Toinette  until  the  school  closed  for 
the  holidays,  and  the  time  was  the  happiest  she 
had  ever  known.  Nor  was  it  for  her  alone,  for 
the  other  girls  came  in  for  their  full  share.  He 
was  a  very  liberal  man,  and  it  gave  him  genuine 
pleasure  to  make  others  happy. 

The  Misses  Carter  lost  no  opportunity  of  put- 

41 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

ting  their  establishment  in  a  favorable  light,  for 
they  had  a  strong  suspicion  that  they  were  in 
a  fair  way  to  lose  something  of  much  more 
tangible  value  to  themselves :  a  very  handsome 
income.  But  Mr.  Reeve  easily  saw  through 
their  little  foibles,  and  was  not  deceived  by  the 
pretty  veneer  into  believing  that  all  was  strong 
and  firm  beneath. 

He  had  traveled  about  the  world  too  much 
during  the  past  six  years  not  to  have  learned 
something  of  human  nature,  and  to  read  it  pretty 
correctly.  Furthermore,  his  feeling  of  self- 
reproach  made  him  keenly  alive  to  every  change 
upon  Toinette's  speaking  countenance,  and  when 
he  saw  the  look  of  questioning  surprise  which 
came  over  it  when  one  or  the  other  of  the  Misses 
Carter  made  some  playful  overture  at  petting 
her,  or  one  of  the  other  girls,  he  drew  his  own 
deductions. 

When  vacation  arrived  he  settled  his  bill  for 
the  year,  bade  them  a  courteous  farewell,  and, 

with  Toinette,  "  scraped  the  dust  from  his  feet 

42 


NEW    EXPERIENCES 

and  left  the  mansion."  Then  came  a  two-weeks' 
holiday  such  as  she  had  never  even  dreamed  of. 
Mr.  Reeve  took  rooms  in  one  of  New  York's  finest 
hotels,  and  gave  himself  up  to  the  pleasure  of 
renewing  his  acquaintance  with  his  daughter. 
That  holiday  was  never  forgotten  by  either  of 
them,  but  for  very  different  reasons.  , 

"By  Jove,"  he  said  to  himself  more  than  once, 
"  I  've  let  a  good  bit  of  precious  time,  and  many 
happy  hours,  slip  away,  if  I  'm  not  mistaken, 
and  I  don't  know  whether  I  shall  ever  catch 
up." 

During  their  stay  in  the  city  Mr.  Reeve  went 
in  quest  of  his  old  college  chum,  Sydney  Powell, 
Cicely's  father,  and  had  an  interview  with  him 
that  was  brief,  but  very  much  to  the  point. 

"  Go  ahead,  Clint,  old  chap,  and  find  what  is 
needed  for  the  little  girls,  if  you  can.  Cicely 
will  never  go  back  to  the  Carter  school,  and  I 
should  be  glad  to  have  the  girls  keep  together. 
They  seem  fond  of  each  other.  How  would  you 
like  to  run  out  to  Montcliff  to  look  up  that  school? 

43 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

I  've  had  fine  reports  of  it  from  Fred  Hubbard, 
whose  daughter  is  a  pupil  there  ? 

And  so  it  came  to  pass  that  directly  after 
vacation  the  two  girls  were  escorted  to  Sunny 
Bank,  as  the  school  was  called,  and,  after  a  very 
satisfactory  talk  with  its  sensible  principal,  Mr. 
Reeve  left  them  to  her  care,  feeling  sure  that 
this  time  lie  had  not  made  any  mistake. 

Toinette  and  Cicely  had  adjoining  rooms,  and 
nothing  could  have  been  daintier  than  the  room 
appointments.  From  their  windows  they  could 
look  out  over  a  wide  sweep  of  the  western  valley, 
where  the  sun  was  just  sinking  behind  the  hills, 
and  leaving  upon  the  sky  a  glorious  promise  of 
the  day  to  follow. 

They  were  still  busy  arranging  their  pretty 
trifles  about  the  rooms  when  the  soft  chime  of 
the  Chinese  gong  in  the  wide  hall  below  an- 
nounced dinner.  Thus  far  they  had  not  seen 
any  of  the  other  girls,  but  as  they  stepped  from 
their  rooms  they  were  met  by  Miss  Preston,  who 
said,  as  she  slipped  an  arm  about  each  waist : 

44 


NEW    EXPERIENCES 

"I  do  not  forget  how  lonely  /  felt  when  I  first 
entered  a  strange  school,  so  let  me  try  to  make 
it  easier  for  my  new  girls  by  introducing  some 
of  my  old  ones ;  real  old,"  she  added,  laughingly, 
as  she  called  to  two  girls  who  were  curled  up  on 
one  corner  of  the  big  divan  at  the  lower  end  of 
the  hall. 

"  Come  here,  chicks,  and  let  me  make  you 
acquainted  with  Miss  Reeve  and  Miss  Powell. 
These  are  Miss  Gordon  and  Miss  Osgood,  my 
dears,  but  as  we  are  all  sort  of  'sisters,  cousins 
and  aunts'  in  this  big  home,  I  '11  just  hint  right 
off  that  their  home  names  are  Ruth  and  Edith, 
who  will  be  glad  to  welcome  my  Toinette  and 
Cicely." 

By  this  time  they  had  reached  the  cheerful 
dining-room,  and  with  a  very  significant  ex- 
change of  glances  Toinette  and  Cicely  took  their 
seats,  the  latter  whispering  under  cover  of  the 
bustle  caused  by  the  entrance  of  the  other  pupils: 
"  My  goodness,  if  Miss  Carter  had  ever  spoken 

45 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

like  that  to  us,  we  should  have  fallen  flat, 
should  n't  we  ?  " 

Ruth  sat  upon  one  side,  and  Edith  upon  the 
other,  and  it  did  not  take  the  new  girls  long  to 
discover  that  the  dinner  hour  must  be  one  of  the 
pleasantest  of  the  day,  for  all  talked  and  chatted 
in  the  liveliest  manner,  discussing  various  hap- 
penings, and  again  and  again  appealing  to  Miss 
Preston,  who  was  not  one  whit  behind  in  the 
spirit  of  good-fellowship  which  prevailed. 

There  were  six  tables,  each  accommodating 
ten  people,  and  a  teacher  sat  at  the  head  of  each. 
In  every  instance  a  teacher  who  was  wise  enough 
not  to  observe  too  much,  but  who  in  reality  saw 
everything,  although  she  could  laugh  and  joke 
with  the  girls,  put  them  at  their  ease,  and  at  the 
same  time  set  them  so  perfect  an  example  that 
few  girls  would  have  cared  to  fail  in  following  it. 
Far  from  exercising  a  restraining  influence,  they 
proved  the  j oiliest  of  companions,  as  the  re- 
peated appeals  to  their  opinions,  or  the  requests 

46 


NEW    EXPERIENCES 

for  some  anecdote  or  amusing  story,  evidently 
old  favorites,  amply  testified. 

When  the  pleasant  dinner  was  ended  the  girls 
gathered  in  the  big  hall,  where  Toinette  and 
Cicely  were  introduced  to  many  of  the  others. 

"  What  have  we  to  do  now  ?  "  asked  Toinette, 
whose  sharp  eyes  had  been  observing  everything 
worth  observing,  and  whose  active  mind  had  re- 
ceived more  impressions  within  the  past  hour 
than  it  had  been  called  upon  to  receive  in  a 
year.  It  is  needless  to  add  that  she  was  quick 
enough  to  profit  by  them,  and  to  appreciate  that 
in  this  school  were  taught  more  surprising  things 
than  chemistry  or  science. 

" Do?"  asked  Ruth. 

"  Yes ;  is  n't  there  some  RULE  to  be  observed 
after  dinner  ?  "  and  a  rather  ironical  tone  came 
into  Toinette's  voice. 

"  Yes  ;  come  along,  and  Edith  and  I  '11  show 
you  the  rule,  as  you  call  it,"  answered  Ruth,  as 
she  caught  up  the  big  basket-ball  lying  upon  one 
of  the  chairs  in  the  hall,  flew  through  the  door 

47 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

with  it,  across  the  piazza  and  into  the  gymnasium 
beyond. 

After  an  instant's  hesitation  the  two  girls  fol- 
lowed, joining  her  and  Edith,  who  had  run  Ruth 
a  lively  race. 

"  You  don't  mean  to  say  that  the  teachers  let 
you  run  and  romp  like  this,  do  you?"  demanded 
Cicely. 

"  Let  us !  "  cried  Edith  in  surprise.  "  Why 
should  n't  they  ?  We  are  n't  doing  any  harm, 
are  we  ?  " 

"  No,  I  don't  suppose  there  is  any  harm,  but 
if  we  had  done  such  a  thing  at  Miss  Carter's, 
what  do  you  think  would  have  happened,,  Toin- 
ette?" 

Toinette  pursed  her  mouth  into  the  primmest 
pucker,  rolled  her  eyes  in  a  horrified  way, 
clasped  her  hands  before  her,  and  said,  in  a 
tragic  tone  :  "  Young  ladies  !  Such  conduct  is 
most  unseemly,"  in  such  perfect  mimicry  of  Miss 
Carter  that  Ruth  and  Edith  shouted. 

"  Well,  all  I  can  say  is,  that  I  'm  thankful  we 
48 


NEW    EXPERIENCES 

were  not  sent  to  that  school;  are  n't  you,  Ruth?" 
said  Edith. 

"  Better  believe  I  am,"  was  the  feeling  reply. 
"  I  get  skittish  even  in  this  blessed  place  some- 
times, but  if  I  had  been  sent  there  I  'd  have 
been  just  like  one  of  those  little  red  imps  that 
Miss  Preston  has  standing  on  her  writing  table." 

"  Yes,  you  'd  have  felt  all  rubbed  the  wrong 
way,  just  as  Cicely  and  I  feel,  and  just  hate  the 
sight  of  a  teacher,  and  want  to  do  everything 
you  could  to  plague  them,"  said  Toinette,  petu- 
lantly. 

"  Well,  you  won't  want  to  do  that  here"  an- 
swered Edith,  emphatically.  "  If  you  cut  any 
such  capers  in  this  school,  it  won't  be  the  teachers 
who  will  go  for  you,  but  the  girls"  with  a  sig- 
nificant wag  of  her  head. 

"The  girls?"  asked  Cicely,  with  a  puzzled 
expression. 

"Certain.  We  think  our  school  about  the 
best  going,  and  we  are  n't  going  to  let  anyone 
else  think  differently,  if  we  can  help  it ;  are  we, 

49 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Ruth  ?  So,  if  a  girl  takes  it  into  lier  head  to  be 
rude  and  cranky  to  the  teachers,  or  other  girls, 
she  finds  herself  in  a  corner  pretty  quick,  I  can 
tell  you." 

"Suppose  you  break  the  rules? "asked  Toinette. 

"Are  n't  any  to  break,"  answered  happy-go- 
lucky  Ruth,  as  she  pranced  down  the  big  room 
after  the  ball,  which  had  gone  bouncing  off. 

"  No  rules  !  "  incredulously. 

"  Not  a  single  one.  All  you  've  got  to  do  is  to 
be  nice  to  everybody,  remember  you  're  a  gentle- 
woman (or  you  would  n't  be  here,  let  me  tell 
you),  and  do  your  jolly  best  to  pass  your  exam- 
inations. If  you  don't  it  is  your  own  fault,  and 
you  have  to  suffer  for  it ;  no  one  else,  that  'a 
sure ;  for  you  can  have  all  the  help  you  ask  for." 

Toinette  and  Cicely  exchanged  glances. 

"  Oh,  I  daresay  you  don't  believe  us,"  said 
Edith,  who  had  correctly  interpreted  the  glances, 
"  but  just  you  wait  and  see.  All  the  new  girls 
think  the  same,  and  I  daresay  that  we  should 
have,  too,  if  we  had  come  here  from  some  other 

50 


NEW    EXPERIENCES 

school ;  but,  thank  goodness,  we  did  n't.  There 
are  n't  any  more  schools  like  this,  are  there, 
Ruth  ?  " 

"  Nary  one ;  there  's  only  one,  and  we  've  got 
it,"  cried  the  irrepressible  Ruth,  and  two  weeks 
later  the  girls  found  that,  truly,  no  rules  could 
be  broken  where  none  existed. 


CHAPTER  V 
TWO   SIDES  OF  A  QUESTION 

IT  could  hardly  be  expected  that,  after  her 
training  of  the  past  six  and  a  half  years, 
Toinette  would  at   once    respond    to   the 
wiser,  more  elevating  influences  now  surround- 
ing her.     The  old  impulses  would  return,  and 
a  desire  to  conceal  where  no  concealment  was 
necessary   often    placed    her   in   a   false   light. 
She  distrusted  those  in  authority  simply  because 
they  were  in  authority,  rather  than  that  they 
ever  made  it  apparent.     It  seemed  to  have  be- 
come second  nature  with  her,  and  bade  fair  to 
prove   a  work   of  almost  infinite  patience   and 
love  upon  the  part  of  the  teachers  to  undo  the 
mischief  wrought  in  those  miserable  years. 
But,  after  making   a   toy  of  the  poor  child 
53 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

for  all  that  time,  fickle  fate  seemed  about  to 
make  amends,  and,  although  it  was  yet  to  be 
proven,  Toinette  was  now  launched  upon  a  sunny 
sea,  and  destined  to  sail  into  a  happy  harbor. 

She  was  sitting  in  her  room  one  beautiful 
afternoon  about  a  week  after  her  arrival  at  the 
school,  and,  unconsciously  doing  profitable  ex- 
amples in  rhetoric  by  drawing  nice  contrasts 
between  her  present  surroundings  and  her 
former  ones.  Presently  a  tap  came  upon  her 
door,  and  she  called :  "  Come  in." 

In  bounced  Ruth,  crying:  "Come  on  down 
to  the  village  with  us,  will  you?  Edith  and 
Cicely  are  waiting  at  the  gate." 

"  Which  teacher  is  going  with  us  ? "  asked 
Toinette,  suspiciously. 

"Teacher?"  echoed  Ruth.  "Why,  none,  of 
course.  Why  don't  you  ask  if  we  are  going  in  a 
baby-carriage  ?  "  and  she  laughed  as  she  slipped 
her  arm  through  Toinette's. 

"  You  don't  mean  to  say  that  we  will  be  al- 
lowed to  go  by  ourselves?" 

54 


TWO    SIDES    OF    A    QUESTION 

"  Toinette  Reeve,  I  think  you  've  got  the 
queerest  ideas  I  ever  heard  of!  Come  on  !" 

In  spite  of  Ruth's  assurance,  Toinette  cast  ap- 
prehensive glances  about  her,  as  though  she 
expected  a  frowning  face  to  appear  around  some 
corner  and  rebuke  them.  Instead,  however, 
they  came  upon  Miss  Howard  just  at  the  end  of 
the  corridor,  who  asked  in  a  cheery  voice : 

"Where  away  so  briskly,  my  lady  birds?" 

"Only  to  the  village;  good-bye,"  answered 
Ruth,  waving  her  hand  in  farewell. 

"  Pleasant  journey.  You  will  probably  run 
across  Miss  Preston  down  there  somewhere,  and 
can  act  as  bodyguard  for  her." 

The  girls  walked  briskly  on,  and  presently 
Cicely  asked : 

"What  are  you  going  for,  anyway?" 

"  Some  good  things,  to  be  sure.  I  'm  just 
perishing  for  some  cream-peppermints,  and  my 
week's  pocket-money  is  scorching  holes  in  my 
pocket  as  fast  as  ever  it  can." 

4 — Caps  and  Capers,  [J5 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Do  you  think  Miss  Preston  would  scold  if 
I  got  something,  too  ?  "  asked  Toinette. 

"  What  would  she  scold  about  ?  You  did  n't 
steal  the  money  you  're  going  to  buy  it  "with, 
did  you?  And  your  stomach  's  your  own,  is  n't 
it  ?  Besides,  when  you  've  been  here  a  while 
longer  you  '11  learn  that  Miss  Preston  does  n't 
scold.  If  she  thinks  a  thing  is  n't  good  for  you 
to  do,  she  just  asks  you  not  to  do  it,  and  she 
takes  it  for  granted  that  you  Ve  got  sense  enough 
to  understand  why." 

"  Oh,  I  guess  you  're  all  saints  in  this  school," 
replied  Toinette,  sarcastically. 

"  Well,  as  near  as  /  can  make  out,  you  had  a 
pretty  good  supply  of  sinners  where  you  came 
from,"  was  the  prompt  retort. 

When  Ruth's  pocket  was  saved  from  destruc- 
tion the  girls  started  homeward.  They  had  not 
gone  far  when  three  of  the  boys  from  the  large 
school  at  the  upper  end  of  the  town  were  seen 
coming  toward  them. 

"  Oh,  jolly,"  cried  Edith,   "  there  are    Ned,  < 
56 


TWO    SIDES    OF    A    QUESTION 

Allan  and  Gilbert !  Now  we  '11  have  fun ;  they  're 
awfully  nice.  Allan  has  the  dearest  pony  and 
trap  you  ever  saw,  and  is  just  as  generous  as  can 
be  with  it." 

The  boys  were  now  beside  them,  and,  raising 
their  caps  politely,  joined  the  party  and  were 
introduced  to  the  new  girls.  This  was  a  com- 
plete revelation  to  Cicely  and  Toinette,  for  at 
Miss  Carter's  school  boys  had  been  regarded  as 
a  species  of  wild  animal,  to  be  shunned  as  though 
they  carried  destruction  to  all  whom  they  might 
overtake. 

But  here  were  Ruth  and  Edith  walking  along 
with  three  of  those  monsters  in  manly  form, 
and,  still  worse,  talking  to  them  in  the  frankest, 
merriest  manner,  as  though  there  were  no  such 
thing  on  earth  as  schools  and  teachers.  Toin- 
ette and  Cicely  dropped  a  little  behind,  and  soon 
found  an  opportunity  to  draw  Edith  with  them. 

"  Don't  forget  that  Miss  Howard  said  that 
Miss  Preston  was  down  in  the  village.  I  '11  bet 
a  cookie  there  11  be  a  fine  rumpus  if  she  catches 

57 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

us  gallivanting  with  all  these  boys,"  whispered 
Toinette. 

A  funny  smile  quivered  about  the  corners  of 
Edith's  mouth,  but  before  she  could  answer  Miss 
Preston  herself  stood  before  them.  She  had 
suddenly  turned  in  from  a  side  street.  As 
though  detected  in  some  serious  misdemeanor, 
Toinette  and  Cicely  hung  back,  and  Edith  re- 
mained beside  them. 

With  such  a  smile  as  only  Miss  Preston  could 
summon,  she  bowed  to  the  group,  and  said : 

"  How  do  you  do,  little  people  ?  Are  you 
going  to  let  me  add  one  more  to  the  party?  I  'm 
not  very  big,  you  know,  and  I  like  a  bodyguard. 
Besides,  I  have  n't  seen  the  boys  in  a  '  blue 
moon,'  and  I  think  it  high  time  I  took  them 
to  task,  for  they  have  n't  been  to  call  upon  us 
in  an  age.  Give  an  account  of  yourselves, 
young  sirs.  Before  very  long  there  is  going  to 
be  a  dance  at  a  house  I  could  mention,  and  you 
don't  want  to  be  forgotten  by  the  hostess,  do 

you?" 

58 


TWO    SIDES    OF    A    QUESTION 

Toinette  and  Cicely  found  it  difficult  to  be- 
lieve themselves  awake.  Touching  Edith's  el- 
bow, they  indicated  by  mysterious  signs  that 
they  wished  to  ask  something,  and  dropped  still 
further  behind. 

"  What  does  it  all  mean,  anyhow  ?  She 
does  n't  really  mean  to  have  the  boys  at  the 
house,  does  she  ?  " 

Edith's  eyes  began  to  twinkle  as  though  some- 
one had  dropped  a  little  diamond  into  each,  and, 
without  answering,  she  gave  a  funny  laugh  and 
took  a  few  quick  steps  forward.  Slipping  an 
arm  about  Miss  Preston's  waist,  she  said:  "Miss 
Preston?" 

"Yes,  dear,"  turning  a  pleasant  face  toward 
the  girl. 

"  The  girls  are  planning  a  candy  frolic  for 
next  Friday  night,  and  were  going  to  ask  your 
permission  to-day,  only  they  have  n't  had  time 
yet.  May  we  have  it  over  in  the  kitchen  of 
the  cottage,  and  may  the  boys  come,  too  ?  " 

A  merry  smile  had  overspread  Miss  Preston's 
59 


face,  and  when  Edith  finished  speaking,  she 
said: 

"Young  gentlemen,  I  hope  you  did  n't  hear 
the  last  remark  made  by  my  friend,  Miss  Os- 
good ;  at  all  events,  you  're  not  supposed  to  have 
done  so;  it  would  be  embarrassing  for  us  all. 
But,  since  you  did  not,  I  '11  say  to  her :  Yes, 
you  may  have  your  candy  frolic,  and  that  is  for 
her  ears  alone.  Now  to  you :  The  girls  are  to 
have  a  candy  frolic  Friday  evening,  and  would 
be  delighted  to  have  your  company." 

It  had  all  been  said  in  Miss  Preston's  irre- 
sistibly funny  way,  and  was  greeted  with  shouts 
of  laughter.  Toinette  and  Cicely  had  learned 
something  new.  All  now  crowded  about  her 
urging  her  to  accept  some  of  their  goodies,  and, 
joining  heartily  in  the  spirit  of  good-comrade- 
ship, she  took  a  sweetie  from  first  one  box  and 
then  another.  Possibly  another  person,  with  a 
stricter  regard  for  Mrs.  Grundy's  extremely  re- 
fined sensibilities,  might  have  hesitated  to  walk 

along  the  highways  surrounded  by  half  a  dozen 

60 


TWO    SIDES    OF    A    QUESTION 

boys  and  girls,  all  chattering  as  hard  as  their 
tongues  could  wag,  and  munching  cream-pepper- 
mints ;  but  Miss  Preston's  motto  was  "  Vis  in 
ute,"  and,  with"  the  fine  instinct  so  often  want- 
ing in  those  who  have  young  characters  to  form, 
she  looked  upon  the  question  from  their  side, 
feeling  sure  that  sooner  or  later  would  arise  ques- 
tions which  she  would  wish  them  to  regard  from 
hers ;  and  therein  lay  the  key-note  of  her  suc- 
cess. 

She  would  no  more  have  thought  of  raising 
the  barrier  of  teacher  and  pupil  between  herself 
and  her  girls  than  she  would  have  thought  of 
depriving  them  of  something  necessary  to  their 
physical  welfare.  The  girls  were  her  friends 
and  she  theirs — their  best  and  truest,  to  whom 
they  might  come  with  their  joys  or  their  sor- 
rows, sure  of  her  sympathy  with  either,  and, 
rather  than  cast  a  shadow  upon  their  confidence, 
she  would  have  toiled  up  the  hill  with  the  whole 
school  swarming  about  her,  and  an  express- 
wagon  of  sweets  following  close  behind.  That 

61 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

was  the  secret  of  her  wonderful  power  over 
them.  They  never  realized  the  disparity  be- 
tween their  own  ages  and  hers,  because  she  had 
never  forgotten  when  life  was  young. 

62 


CHAPTER  VI 
DULL   AND   PROSY 

IT  is  to  be  hoped  that  those  who  read  this 
story  will  not  run  off  with  the  idea  that  I 
am  trying  to  set  Miss  Preston's  school  up 
as  a  model  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  for  I  am 
not.  I  am  simply  trying  to  tell  a  story  of  board- 
ing-school life  as  it  really  was  "once  upon  a 
time."  And  I  think  that  I  ought  to  be  able  to 
tell  it  pretty  correctly,  having  seen  with  my  own 
eyes  and  heard  with  my  own  ears  many  of  the 
pranks  related.  The  methods  followed  and  the 
results  obtained  may  be  believed  or  not ;  that 
rests  with  the  individual  reading.  Long  ago, 
in  my  own  childhood  days,  our  "old  Virginy" 
cook  used  to  say  to  me :  "  La,  chile,  dey  's  a  heap 
sight  mo'  flies  ketched  wid  'lasses  dan  vingegar," 

63 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

and  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  she  had 
truth  on  her  side. 

The  girls  were  by  no  means  saints.  Saints, 
after  all,  are  rather  ethereal  creatures,  and  Miss 
Preston's  girls  were  real  flesh  and  blood  lassies, 
brimful  of  life  and  fun,  and,  like  most  lassies, 
ready  for  a  good  time. 

As  Ruth  had  said,  there  were  no  rules ;  that 
is,  the  girls  were  never  told  that  they  must  not 
do  this,  or  that  they  must  do  the  other  thing. 
A  spirit  of  courtesy  dominated  everything,  and 
a  subtle  influence  pervaded  the  entire  school, 
bringing  about  desired  results  without  words. 
The  girls  understood  that  all  possible  liberty 
would  be  granted  them,  and  that  their  outgoings 
and  incomings  would  be  exactly  such  as  would 
be  allowed  them  in  their  own  homes,  and  if 
some  were  inclined  to  abuse  that  liberty  they 
soon  learned  where  license  began. 

No  school  turned  out  better  equipped  girls,  and 
none  held  a  higher  standard  in  college  examina- 
tions. A  Sunny  Bank  diploma  was  a  sure  pass- 

64 


DULL    AND    PROSY 

port.  When  the  girls  worked  they  worked  hard, 
and  when  playtime  came  it  was  enjoyed  to  the  full. 
Naturally,  with  so  many  dispositions  surround- 
ing her,  Miss  Preston  often  in  secret  floundered 
in  a  "  slough  of  despond,"  for  that  which  could 
influence  one  girl  for  her  good  might  prove  a 
complete  failure  when  brought  to  bear  upon 
another.  Never  was  the  old  adage,  "  What  is 
one  man's  meat  is  another  man's  poison,"  more 
truly  illustrated. 

But  Miss  Preston  had  a  stanch  friend,  and 
trusted  Him  implicitly.  Often,  when  perplexed 
and  troubled,  a  half-hour's  quiet  talk  with  Him 
close  shut  behind  her  own  door  would  give  her 
wisdom  and  strength  for  the  baffling  question, 
and  when  she  again  appeared  among  them  the 
girls  wondered  at  her  serene  expression  and 
winning  smile,  for  in  that  half-hour's  seclusion 
she  had  managed  to  remove  all  trace  of  the  soil 
from  the  "  slough,"  and,  refreshed  and  strength- 
ened by  an  unfailing  help,  could  resume  her 
"  Pilgrimage." 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

She  often  said,  in  her  quaint  way:  "The 
hardest  work  I  have  to  do  is  to  undo,"  and  that 
was  very  true.  Many  times  the  home  influence 
was  of  the  worst  possible  sort  for  a  young  girl, 
or  else  there  was  just  none  at  all.  Such  girls 
were  difficult  subjects.  Many  had  come  from 
other  schools,  as  in  Toinette's  case,  where  dis- 
trust seemed  to  be  the  key-note  of  the  estab- 
lishment, and  then  came  Miss  Preston's  severest 
trials.  The  confidence  of  such  girls  must  be 
won  ere  a  step  could  be  taken  in  the  right 
direction.  It  was  a  rare  exception  when  Miss 
Preston  failed  to  win  it. 

"  You  feel  such  a  nasty  little  bit  of  a  crawling 
thing  when  you  Ve  done  a  mean  thing  to  Miss 
Preston,"  a  girl  once  said.  "  If  she  'd  only  give 
you  a  first-class  blowing  up — for  that 's  just  what 
you  know  you  deserve  all  the  time — you  could 
stand  it,  but  she  never  does.  She  just  puts  her 
arm  around  you  and  looks  straight  through  you 
with  those  soft  gray  eyes  of  hers,  and  never  says 
one  word.  Then  you  begin  to  shrivel  up,  and 

66 


DULL    AND    PROSY 

you  keep  right  on  shriveling  till  you  feel  like 
Alice  in  Wonderland.  You  can't  say  boo,  be- 
cause she  has  n't,  and  when  she  gives  you  a  soft 
little  kiss  on  your  forehead,  and  whispers  so 
gently:  Don't  try  to  talk  about  it  now,  dear; 
just  go  and  lock  yourself  in  your  room  and 
have  a  quiet  think,  and  I  'm  sure  the  kink  will 
straighten  out.  I  could  lie  flat  on  the  floor  and 
let  her  dance  a  hornpipe  on  me  if  she  wanted  to." 
It  was  not  to  be  expected  that  all  the  other 
teachers  would  display  such  remarkable  tact  as 
their  principal,  but  her  example  went  a  long 
way.  Moreover,  she  was  very  careful  in  the 
choice  of  those  in  whose  care  her  girls  were  to 
be  given,  and  often  said :  "  Neither  schools  nor 
colleges  make  teachers :  it  is  God  first,  and 
mothers  afterward."  .  And  she  was  not  far 
wrong,  for  God  must  put  love  into  the  human 
heart,  and  mothers  must  shape  the  character. 
When  I  see  a  child  playing  with  her  dollies,  I 
can  form  a  pretty  shrewd  guess  of  the  manner  of 
woman  that  child's  mother  is. 

67 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Frolics  and  pranks  of  all  sorts  were  by  no 
means  unknown  in  the  school,  and  often  they 
were  funny  enough,  but  what  Miss  Preston  did 
not  know  about  those  frolics  was  not  worth 
knowing.  Her  instructions  to  her  teachers  were : 
"  Don't  see  too  much.  Unless  there  is  danger  of 
flood  or  fire,  appendicitis  or  pneumonia,  be 
blind." 

Many  of  the  girls  had  their  own  ponies  and 
carriages,  and  drove  about  the  beautiful  suburbs 
of  Montcliff.  If  the  boys  chose  to  hop  up 
behind  a  trap  and  drive  along,  too,  where  was 
the  harm  ?  The  very  fact  that  it  need  not  be 
concealed  made  it  a  matter  of  course.  Friday 
evenings  were  always  ones  of  exceptional  liberty. 
Callers  of  both  sexes  came,  and  the  girls  danced, 
had  candy  pulls,  or  any  sort  of  impromptu  fun. 
Once  a  year,  usually  in  February,  a  dance  was 
given,  which  was,  of  course,  the  event  of  the 
season. 

During  the  week  the  girls  kept  early  hours, 

and  at  nine-thirty  the  house  was,  as  a  rule,  en 

68 


DULL    AND    PROSY 

route  for  the  "Land  o'  Nod,"  but  exceptions 
came  to  prove  the  rule,  and  nothing  was  more 
liable  to  cause  one  than  the  arrival  of  a  box 
from  home.  Upon  such  occasions  the  "fire, 
flood,  appendicitis  and  pneumonia "  hint  held 
good. 

69 


CHAPTER  VII 
THE   P.    U.    L. 

"HAT  upon  earth  are  you  doing ! " 
exclaimed  Toinette,  as  she  opened 
Ruth's  door,  in  response  to  the 
"come  in  "  which  followed  her  knock,  and  stood 
transfixed  upon  the  threshold  at  the  spectacle 
she  beheld. 

"  Cleaning  house,  to  be  sure.  Did  n't  you 
ever  do  it  ?  " 

"  Well,  not  exactly  that  way,"  was  Toinette's 
reply. 

Ruth  threw  back  her  head  and  gave  a  merry 
peal  of  laughter. 

"  It  is  rather  a  novel  way,  I  will  admit,  but, 
you  see,  I  hate  to  do  things  just  exactly  as  every- 
body else  does,  so  I  sailed  right  in,  head  over 

5 — Caps  and  Capers,  'Jl 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

ears.  To  tell  the  truth,  now  I  'm  in,  I  wish  it 
was  n't  quite  so  deep,"  and  Ruth  cast  a  look 
strongly  savoring  of  despair  at  the  conglomera- 
tion surrounding  her. 

She  was  seated  in  the  middle  of  the  floor,  and 
almost  buried  beneath  the  contents  of  every 
drawer  and  closet  in  the  room.  Not  only  her 
own,  but  Edith's  belongings,  too,  had  been 
dumped  in  a  promiscuous  heap  on  the  floor,  and 
such  a  sea  of  underclothing,  stockings,  shoes, 
dresses,  waists,  jackets,  coats,  hats,  gloves,  collars, 
ties,  ribbons,  veils,  dressing-sacques,  golf-capes 
and  belts,  to  say  nothing  of  the  contents  of  both 
their  jewel  boxes,  no  pen  can  describe. 

Not  content  with  the  contents,  the  drawers, 
too,  had  been  dragged  out  to  be  dusted,  and 
were  standing  on  end  all  about  her,  a  veritable 
rampart  of  defence. 

"  I  should  n't  think  you  would  know  where  to 
begin,"  said  Toinette. 

"  I  don't,  and  I  think  I  '11  leave  the  whole 

mess  for  Helma  to  tidy  up  in  the  morning,"  and 

72 


THE    P.   U.    L. 

up  jumped  Ruth,  to  give  the  last  stroke  to  the 
disorder  by  overturning  the  tray  of  pins  and 
hairpins  which  she  had  been  sorting  when 
Toinette  entered. 

"  There,  now  you  have  done  it ! "  exclaimed 
Edith,  "  and  I  can  tell  you  one  thing,  you  may 
just  as  well  make  up  your  mind  to  put  my 
things  back  where  you  got  them,  'cause  I  'm  not 
going  to,"  and  she  wagged  her  head  positively. 

"  Oh,  dear  me,  this  is  what  comes  of  trying  to 
be  a  P.  U.  L.,"  said  Ruth. 

"A  P.  U.  L.?"  asked  Toinette.  "What  in 
the  world  is  that?" 

"  That  's  what  it  is !  I  found  it  stuck  up  in 
my  room  when  I  got  back  from  recitations  to- 
day. I  Ve  been  in  such  a  tear  of  a  hurry  for 
the  last  few  mornings  that  my  room  has  n't  been 
quite  up  to  the  mark,  I  suppose,  but  Miss  Pres- 
ton never  said  a  word,  and  now  here 's  this  thing 
stuck  here." 

Toinette  took  the  sheet  of  paper  which  Ruth 
handed  to  her,  and  began  to  read : 

73 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

THE   PICK-UP    LEAGUE 

Do  you  wish  to  join  the  P.  U.  L.  ? 
Then  listen  to  this,  but  don't  you  tell, 
For  it  's  a  great  secret,  and  will  be — well— 
We  hope,  as  potent  as  "  book  and  bell." 

A  P.  U.  L.  has  a  place  for  her  hat, 
And  keeps  it  there ;  0  wonder  of  that ! 
Her  gloves  are  put  away  in  their  case  ; 
Her  coat  hung  up  with  a  charming  grace. 

School-books  and  papers  are  laid  away, 
To  be  quickly  found  on  the  following  day. 
Then,  ere  she  starts,  so  blithe  and  gay, 
She  tarries  a  moment  just  to  say: 

"  Wait,  just  a  jiff,  while  I  stop  to  put 
This  blessed  gown  on  its  proper  hook, 
And  tuck  this  '  nightie  '  snugly  from  sight 
Under  my  pillow  for  to-night. 

"  And  all  these  little,  kinky  hairs, 
Which,  though  so  frail,  can  prove  such  snares, 
And  furnish  some  one  a  chance  to  say : 
'  Your  comb  and  brush  were  not  cleaned  to-day.' 
74 


"DO    YOU    WISH    TO   JOIN    THE    P.    U.    L.  ?" 

75 


THE    P.    U.    L. 

*  Hair  ribbons,  trinkets,  scraps  and  bits, 
Papers  and  pencils  and  torn  snips, 
Left  scattered  about  can  prove  such  pits ! 
And  in  we  tumble,  and  just  '  catch  fits.' 

"  And  this  is  the  reason  we  formed  the  league, 
And  will  keep  its  rules,  you  had  better  believe : 
To  keep  our  rooms  tidy,  to  keep  things  neat, 
So  much  that  is  '  bitter '  may  be  turned  '  sweet.'  " 

When  she  had  finished  reading,  she  sat  down 
on  the  edge  of  the  bed  and  laughed  till  she 
cried. 

"  Great,  is  n't  it  ?  "  asked  Ruth.  "  That  's  the 
way  Miss  Preston  brings  us  up  to  schedule  time. 
When  I  came  home  from  the  school-building 
this  afternoon  I  thought  I  'd  do  wonders ;  and," 
she  added,  ruefully,  "  I  guess  I  've  done  them. 
Good  gracious,  I  'in  so  hungry  from  work- 
ing so  hard  that  I  just  can't  see  straight. 
Is  n't  there  something  eatable  in  the  establish- 
ment?" 

"If  that  much  work  reduces  you  to  a  state 
of  starvation,  what  will  you  be  when  it  's  all 

77 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

done?"  asked  Edith.  "There  were  some  crack- 
ers on  the  shelf,  but  land  knows  where  they 
are  now ;  you  've  dragged  every  blessed  thing 
off  of  it." 

"There  are  your  crackers,  right  under  your 
nose,"  said  Ruth,  triumphantly,  as  she  pointed 
to  a  box  of  wafers  half  hidden  under  Edith's  best 
hat.  "  There  's  some  tea  in  that  caddy,  and  you 
can  heat  some  water  in  the  kettle.  What  more 
do  you  want  ?  " 

Edith  scratched  a  match  and  held  it  to  the 
little  alcohol  lamp  under  the  tea-kettle,  but  no 
flame  resulted. 

"  Every  bit  of  alcohol  is  burned  out.  Have 
you  any  more  ?  " 

"  Not  a  drop ;  used  the  last  to  get  the  pine- 
gum  off  my  fingers  after  we  came  back  from  the 
woods  last  Tuesday.  Here,  take  the  cologne, 
that  will  do  just  as  well,"  and  forthwith  the 
cologne  was  poured  into  the  lamp,  which  was 
soon  burning  away  right  merrily.  The  water  was 
heated,  the  tea  made,  and  four  girls  sat  down  in 

78 


THE    P.   U.   L. 

the  midst  of  the  topsy-turvy  room  to  sip  tea  and 
munch  saltines. 

"  I  came  in  to  ask,"  said  Toinette,  "  whether 
you  girls  have  any  secret  societies  in  this  school ; 
have  you?" 

"  Nary  one,  as  I  know  of,"  answered  the 
irrepressible  Euth.  "  Wish  we  had." 

"  Let 's  start  one,"  said  Toinette.  "  We  had 
two  or  three  at  Miss  Carter's ;  they  had  to  be 
secret  or  none  at  all,  and  it  was  no  end  of  fun. 
Papa  wrote  me  that  he  was  going  to  send  me  a 
box  of  good  things  before  long,  and  when  it 
comes  let  's  meet  that  night  and  have  a  feast. 
He  will  no  doubt  send  enough  for  the  entire 
school,  he  always  does,  and  I  want  some  of  the 
girls  to  have  the  benefit  of  it." 

"Don't  believe  you  will  have  to  urge  them 
very  hard,"  said  Edith,  laughing. 

"  Good !  "  cried  Ruth.  "  Which  girls  shall 
we  ask?" 

Toinette  named  eight  girls  beside  themselves, 
saying : 

79 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  That  will  make  an  even  dozen  to  start  with. 
'More  may  come  later,  but  that  is  enough  to 
begin ;  don't  you  think  so  ?  " 

"  Plenty.  If  we  have  too  many  there  will  be 
sure  to  be  someone  to  let  the  cat  out  of  the  bag. 
Come  on,  Cicely,  let  *s  go  hunt  the  others  up, 
and,  leaving  Toinette  and  Edith  in  the  orderly  (?) 

room,  off  they  flew. 

80 


T 


CHAPTER  VIII 
CAPS  AND   CAPEES 

HE  eight  girls  were  quickly  gathered  in 
Ruth's  and  Edith's  room  and  listening 
eagerly  to  the  scheme  afoot.  It  need  not 
be  added  that  it  was  unanimously  carried,  and 
it  was  only  necessary  to  choose  a  name-  for  the 
society. 

"  Let  's  all  wear  masks  and  caps  and  cut  all 
sorts  of  capers.  It  will  be  just  no  end  of  fun," 
cried  Ethel  Squire,  a  pretty,  bright  girl  of  fifteen 
who  was  always  ready  for  a  frolic. 

"Splendid!"  cried  Toinette,  "and  Ethel  has 
given  me  a  fine  idea  for  a  name ;  let  'a  call  it 
the  C.  C.  C." 

"  C.  C.  C.  ?  What  under  the  sun  does  that 
stand  for  ?  "  asked  Helen  Burgess,  a  quiet,  serene 

j  Si 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

little  body,  and  a  general  favorite  with  the  other 
girls. 

"  Guess,"  said  Toinette. 

"  Cuffs  and  Collars  Club,"  said  May  Foster ; 
"  mine  cause  me  more  trouble  than  all  the  rest 
of  my  toilet,  so  they  are  never  far  from  my 
thoughts." 

"  Cake  and  Cackle  Club,"  said  another. 

"  Cheese  and  Cider ;  a  delicious  combination 
when  you  've  acquired  a  taste  for  them  ! "  said 
Marie  Taylor. 

"  Clandestine  Carnivori,"  was  the  last  guess, 
which  raised  a  shout. 

"  Good  gracious  !  let  me  tell  you  quickly  be- 
fore you  exhaust  the  dictionary,"  laughed  Toin- 
ette ;  "  how  will  the  Caps  and  Capers  Club  do  ?" 

"  Hurrah !  "  cried  Ruth,  "just  the  very  thing. 
We  '11  all  wear  our  bath-robes  and  white  caps 
and  masks.  I  've  loads  of  white  crepe  paper, 
which  will  be  the  very  thing  to  make  them  of, 
so  let  's  sit  down  and  make  them  right  away. 
Come  on,  girls,  help  clear  up  this  mess,  and 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

then  I  '11  find  the  paper.  I  can  give  the  finish- 
ing touches  to  the  closets  and  bureau  drawers 
to-morrow." 

All  turned  to  with  more  ardor  than  skill,  and 
in  a  very  few  moments  the  conglomeration  upon 
the  floor  had  vanished.  How  it  fared  with  Ruth 
and  Edith  when  it  came  time  to  dress  has  never 
been  disclosed.  However,  the  room  restored  to 
outward  order,  twelve  girls  set  to  work  to  fashion 
caps  and  masks,  and,  as  the  last  one  was  com- 
pleted, the  dressing-bell  rang  and  all  scattered 
to  prepare  for  dinner. 

The  evening  hours  at  Sunny  Bank  were  very 
pleasant  ones,  for  during  the  winter,  while  days 
were  short  and  nights  were  long,  there  was  not 
much  opportunity  for  outdoor  diversion.  Im- 
mediately after  dinner  Miss  Howard,  the  litera- 
ture teacher,  would  place  her  snug  little  rock- 
ing-chair before  the  cheerful  open  fire  in  the  big 
hall,  and  the  girls  would  gather  about  her;  some 
on  chairs,  some  on  hassocks,  and  some  curled 
upon  the  large  fur  rug  in  front  of  the  blazing 

83 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

logs,  wliile  she  read  aloud  for  an  hour.  A  fine 
library  in  Mont  Cliff  supplied  books  of  every 
imaginable  sort,  and  the  girls  were  allowed  to 
take  turns  in  selecting  them ;  providing,  of  course, 
their  selections  were  wise  ones.  But  with  Miss 
Howard  as  guide  they  could  not  go  far  astray, 
and  many  a  delightful  hour  was  passed  before 
the  fire.  Just  at  present  the  books  chosen  were 
those  relating  to  English  history,  and  con- 
tained good,  hard  facts,  but,  when  the  girls  grew 
a  little  tired  of  such  substantial  diet,  historical 
novels  came  handy  for  a  relish.  As  England  was 
cutting  a  prominent  figure  in  the  world  just 
then,  the  girls  were  encouraged  to  keep  in  touch 
with  the  current  events,  and  to  talk  freely  about 
them.  The  last  book  read,  at  least  the  one  they 
were  just  concluding,  was  one  which  brought  into 
strong  contrast  the  reigns  of  England's  two 
greatest  queens,  and  the  subject  was  discussed  in 
a  lively  manner. 

The  book  was  finished  shortly  before  the  hour 
ended,  and,  laying  it  upon  her  lap,  Miss  How- 

84 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

ard  began  to  ask  a  few  leading  questions  in 
order  to  get  the  girls  started.  As  always  hap- 
pens, there  were  some  girls  not  wildly  enthu- 
siastic over  historical  subjects,  and  such  books 
did  not  hold  their  attention  as  a  modern  novel 
filled  with  thrilling  situations  would  have  done. 
But  these  were  the  very  ones  whom  Miss  How- 
ard most  wished  to  reach,  and,-  feeling  sure  that 
her  chances  of  doing  so  through  such  methods 
were  far  greater  than  could  be  hoped  for  if  she 
pinned  them  right  down  to  hard,  dry  facts,  she 
took  infinite  pains  to  make  her  readings  as  in- 
teresting as  much  research  and  a  careful  selection 
of  books  could  make  them. 

The  conversation  was  in  full  swing,  and  Miss 
Howard,  in  high  feather  over  the  very  evident 
impression  the  book  had  made,  was  congratulat- 
ing herself  upon  her  choice  of  that  particular 
volume,  when  one  girl  asked : 

"  Miss  Howard,  what  particular  act  of  Eliza- 
beth's reign  do  you  think  had  the  greatest  in- 
fluence upon  later  reigns?" 

85 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  That  is  rather  a  difficult  question  to  answer, 
Natala.  It  was  such  a  brilliant  reign  and  so 
fraught  with  portentous  results  in  the  future 
that  it  would  be  very  difficult  to  say  that  this  or 
that  one  act  was  greatest  of  all ;  although,  un- 
questionably, the  translation  of  the  Bible  was  one 
of  the  greatest  blessings  to  posterity.  Who  can 
tell  me  something  of  great  interest  which  hap- 
pened then  ?  " 

"  I  can !  "  cried  Pauline  Holden. 

"  I  'm  more  than  delighted  to  hear  it,"  an- 
swered Miss  Howard,  for  Pauline  was  at  once 
her  joy  and  her  despair.  Affectionate  and 
good-natured  to  the  last  degree,  she  was  never 
disturbed  by  anything,  but  I  put  it  very  mildly 
when  I  say  that  Pauline  did  not  possess  a  bril- 
liant mind. 

"  Yes,"  continued  Pauline.  "  There  are  not 
many  things  in  history  that  I  care  two  straws 
about,  but  I  remembered  that  because  the  names 
made  me  think  of  a  rhyme  my  old  nurse  used 

to  say  when  she  put  me  to  bed." 

86 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Miss  Howard's  hopes  received  a  slight  shock, 
but  she  asked : 

"  Will  you  tell  us  what  it  is  ?  " 

"It  was  letting  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and 
John  out,"  triumphantly. 

"  Letting  whom  out  ?  "  asked  Miss  Howard, 
wondering  what  upon  earth  was  to  follow. 

"  Yes,  don't  you  remember  they  let  them  out 
during  Elizabeth's  reign  ?  " 

"Let  them  out  of  where?" 

"  Why,  out  of  the  Tower,  to  be  sure,  and  it 
made  such  a  difference  in  a  history  some  man 
was  writing  just  then,  because  they  had  had  a 
lot  to  do  with  it  somehow — I  don't  remember 
just  what  it  was.  Maybe  one  of  the  other  girls 


can." 


By  this  time  all  the  other  girls  were  nearly 
dying  of  suppressed  laughter,  and  when  poor 
Pauline  turned  to  them  so  seriously  it  proved 
the  last  straw,  and  such  a  shout  as  greeted  her 
fairly  made  the  wall  ring.  It  was  too  much  for 

87 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Miss  Howard,  and,  with  one  last  look  of  despair, 
she  gave  way  and  laughed  till  she  cried. 

When  the  laugh  had  subsided  and  they  had 
recovered  their  breath,  Miss  Howard  endeavored 
to  explain  to  the  brilliant  expounder  of  English 
history  that  Queen  Elizabeth  had  had  more  to 
do  with  keeping  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and 
John  out  of  the  Bible  than  in  the  Tower  of 
London. 

88 


CHAPTER  IX 
A   MODERN   DIOGENES 

HALF-PAST  nine.     Sh !     Yes,  down  in 
the  old  laundry." 
"Who  'scorning?" 

"  The  whole  club.     No  end  of  fun." 

This  whispered  conversation  took  place  in  the 
upper  corridor.  Many  of  the  girls  had  come 
from  schools  where  frolics  were  looked  upon  as 
an  almost  heinous  crime,  and  strict  rules  and 
surveillance  had  made  their  lives  a  burden  to 
them. 

It  was  about  ten  o'clock  when  ghostly  figures 
began  to  slip  through  the  dark  halls.  Lights 
had  been  extinguished  at  nine-thirty  and  all  was 
now  silent. 

Miss  Preston  was  in  her  room  in  a  remote 

6 — Caps  and  Capers.  3o 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

part  of  the  house,  and  most  of  the  other  teachers 
had  rooms  in  the  adjoining  building.  The 
laundry  in  this  house  was  never  used,  and  stout 
blinds  shut  out — and  in — all  light. 

Tap,  tap,  tap.' 

"  Who  's  there  ?  "  was  whispered  from  within. 

"  C.  C.  C.,  open  for  me." 

The  door  opened,  and  in  skipped  a  figure 
arrayed  like  the  six  already  assembled,  in  a 
warm  dressing-gown  and  a  high  peaked  paper 
cap,  with  white  tissue  mask  and  spy-holes. 

All  spoke  in  whispers,  so  it  was  almost  im- 
possible to  recognize  any  one.  But  this  only 
added  to  the  fun  and  mystery.  "  Spread  the 
feast,  girls;  the  others  will  soon  be  here.  Let  's 
see,  how  many  are  there  ?  Seven !  Why  don't 
the  other  five  hurry?  I  wonder  which  ones 
here  are  n't  here  ?  one  girl  laughingly  whispered. 

"  They  '11  come,  never  fear,  but  their  rooms 
are  nearer  '  headquarters,'  "  said  another. 

"  What  luck  !  Miss  Preston  does  n't  suspect  a 

thing.     I  met  her  in  the  hall  just  before  *  lights' 

90 


A    MODERN    DIOGENES 

bell,  and  she  said  as  innocently  as  could  be,  'You 
look  as  though  you  were  quite  ready  for  the 
"  land  o'  dreams,"  Elsie,  but  so  long  as  you  do 
not  take  a  gallop  on  a  "  night  mare  "  all  will  be 
well,'  and  I  could  hardly  help  laughing  when 
I  thought  how  soon  I  might  be  equipped  for 


one." 


"  This  fudge  is  my  contribution,"  said  another. 

"  Hold  on,  girls  !  I  Ve  a  brilliant  idea,"  said 
Toinette.  "  Who  's  got  a  long  hairpin  ?  Good  ! 
that 's  fine.  Now  prepare  for  something  delect- 
able," and,  straightening  out  the  pin,  she  stuck  a 
marsh  mallow  on  it  and  held  the  white  lump  of 
lusciousness  over  the  one  candle  until  it  was 
toasted  a  golden  if  rather  smoky  brown. 

Tap,  tap,  tap. 

"  It  's  the  others.  Quick !  let  them  in,  for 
it 's  half-past  ten  already. 

The  signals  were  exchanged,  and  in  walked 
not  five  but  nine  more  figures. 

"  Oh,  girls,  such  luck !  Just  as  I  came  out  of 
my  room  I  ran  right  into  Maud  Hanscomb's 

91 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

arms,  and  she  would  n't  let  me  go  till  I  'd  told 
her  what  was  up  and  promised  to  let  her  and 
the  other  girls  share  our  fun.  She  said  they 
suspected  something  was  up,  and  they  were 
bound  to  share  it.  And  such  a  spread !  Land 
knows  how  they  got  it !  Just  look." 

The  tubs  were  now  groaning  under  their 
burden  of  king  apples,  cookies,  which  bore  a 
striking  resemblance  to  those  served  at  dinner ; 
crackers,  which  had  surely  rested  in  the  house- 
keeper's pantry,  and,  joy  of  joys,  a  huge  tub  of 
ice  cream,  to  say  nothing  of  what  the  original 
five  brought. 

"  Now,  girls,  come  on  !  Let  's  eat  our  cream 
and  make  sure  of  it  in  case  of  accidents,"  said 
the  stout  red  ghost,  in  red  cap  and  mask,  who 
presided  over  the  tub.  "  No  time  to  get  plates, 
so  hand  over  anything  you  've  got,  and  excuse  the 
elegance  of  my  spoon.  It  's  cook's  soup  spoon, 
and  may  give  the  cream  an  oniony  flavor,  but 
that  will  add  to  the  novelty,"  she  said  as  she 

served  it. 

92 


A    MODERN    DIOGENES 

V 

"Who  is  she,  anyhow?"  asked  one  girl,  who 
eat  eating  cream  from  a  soap  dish. 

"  Have  n't  the  least  idea.  One  of  the  old  girls, 
I  dare  say,  but  who  cares  when  she  can  conjure 
up  such  delicacies  ?  " 

As  midnight  struck  appetites  and  feast  came 
to  an  end. 

"  I  vote,"  whispered  one  girl,  "  that  we  all 
take  off  our  masks  and  have  a  good  look  at  each 
other,  so  we  '11  know  who  's  who  when  we  meet 
in  public." 

"  It 's  a  go,"  whispered  several  others,  and  off 
they  all  came. 

"  Let  's  have  more  light,"  said  the  donor  of 
the  cream,  and  reached  up  and  touched  the 
electric  button. 

"Oh!  Oh!  Oh!  Don't!  Miss  Preston  will 
catch  us ! "  cried  dismayed  voices,  but  Miss 
Preston  herself  stood  before  them,  a  red  mask 
in  one  hand  and  a  great  spoon  in  the  other. 

"  This  is  n't  the  first  spread  I  've  attended," 
she  said,  "  and  I  hope  it  won't  be  the  last.  I  've 

93 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

had  too  good  a  time.  I  had  an  idea  the  old 
laundry  would  prove  an  inviting  place  to-niglit, 
but  I  never  attend  a  feast  without  my  tub  and 
candle — or  electric  light  in  this  twentieth  cen- 
tury— for,  like  another  mortal  who  had  a  fancy 
for  tubs  and  a  candle,  I  am  in  search  of  honest 
folk. 

"  Your  spread  was  a  great  success,  girls.  Only 
next  time  let  me  know  beforehand.  I  may  not 
be  able  to  be  present  in  person,  but  I  can  still 
furnish  the  tub  and  light,  and  it  will  be  a  com- 
fort to  me  to  know  the  menu  in  order  to  guard 
against  future  ills.  Good-night.  I  'm  ready  for 
my  bed,  and  I  should  n't  wonder  if  you  were, 
too,"  and>  with  a  flourish  of  her  red  cap  and  big 
spoon,  Miss  Preston  slipped  through  the  door. 

Some  very  wise  ghosts  sped  away  through 
the  dark  corridors,  and  whispered  conversations 
were  held  far  into  the  "  wee,  sma'  hours." 

The  next  day  the  story  was  all  over  the  school, 
and  met  with  various  comments.  One  of  Miss 

Preston's  combined  torments  and  blessings  was 

94 


A    MODERN    DIOGENES 

the  teacher  of  chemistry,  a  thoroughly  conscien- 
tious woman,  and  exceptionally  capable,  but  a 
woman  who  took  life  very  seriously.  Miss 
Preston  used  to  say  that  Mrs.  Stone  must  have 
been  forty  years  old  when  she  was  born,  and  con- 
sequently had  missed  all  her  child  and  girlhood. 
She  was  kind  and  just  to  the  girls,  but  could  not 
for  the  life  of  her  understand  why  they  must 
have  fun,  and  that  fun  in  secret  was  twice  the 
fun  that  everybody  knew  about. 

Well  Miss  Preston  knew  that  Mrs.  Stone 
would  take  advantage  of  her  privilege  as  an  old 
friend,  as  well  as  one  of  the  oldest  teachers,  and 
come  in  her  solemn  way  to  'discuss  the  latest 
escapade,  pro  and  con,  so  she  was  not  in  the 
least  surprised  when  there  came  a  light  tap  upon 
her  door  that  afternoon,  and  Mrs.  Stone  entered. 
" '  Save  me  from  my  friends,' "  quoted  Miss 
Preston,  under  her  breath. 

95 


CHAPTER  X 
"  THEY   COULD    NEVER    DECEIVE   ME  " 

"~lT~irTELL,  Mrs.  Stone,  what  can  I  do  for  you, 

V  V       and  why  such  a  serious  expression  ?  " 

"  My  dear  Marion,"saidMrs.  Stone, 

using   Miss   Preston's   Christian   name,  as    she 

sometimes  did  when  more  than  usually  solicitous 

of  her  welfare,  "  I  've  come  to  have  a  little  talk 

with  you  regarding  what  happened  last  night, 

and  I  'm  sure  you  will  not  take  it  amiss  from 

one  who  has  known  you  since  your  childhood." 

"Do    I  often   take  it    amiss?"   asked    Miss 

Preston,  with  an  odd  smile. 

"  Indeed,  no ;  you  are  most  considerate  of  my 
feelings,  and  I  fully  appreciate  it,  considering 
our  business  relations.  Of  course,  I  have  not 
the  slightest  right  to  dictate  to  you,  nor  would 

97 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

I  care  to  have  you  regard  it  in  the  light  of  dic- 
tation. It  is  only  my  extreme  interest  in  your 
welfare  that  prompts  me  to  speak  at  all." 

"And  is  my  welfare  in  serious  peril  now?" 
asked  Miss  Preston,  half  laughing  as  she  re- 
called the  previous  evening's  prank  and  her  own 
very  thorough  enjoyment  of  the  fun. 

"  No,  my  dear,  not  in  peril,  but  I  fear  that 
you  will  never  grow  to  look  upon  your  po- 
sition in  the  world  with  sufficient  seriousness, 
for,  I  assure  you,  your  responsibility  is  enor- 
mous." 

"  Would  I  could  forget  that  mighty  fact  for 
one  little  fleeting  moment,"  thought  Miss  Pres- 
ton, but,  aloud,  she  asked  : 

"And  do  you  think  that  I  am  not  fully  con- 
scious of  it,  Mrs.  Stone  ?  " 

"Oh,  most  conscious!  most  conscious!  You 
could  not  be  more  conscientious,  I  am  sure,  but 
you  sometimes  let  a  misdemeanor,  such  as  oc- 
curred last  night,  go  unpunished,  and  it  estab- 
lishes an  unfortunate  precedent,  I  fear." 

98 


THEY   COULD   NEVER    DECEIVE    ME 

"  Did  you  ever  know  me  to  punish  any  girl 
placed  in  my  charge  ?  "  asked  Miss  Preston,  a 
slight  flush  creeping  over  her  face. 

"  Certainly  not !  Certainly  not !  "  cried  Mrs. 
Stone,  hastily,  for  she  had  touched  upon  a  point 
which  she  knew  to  be  a  very  sensitive  one  with 
her  principal,  and  wished  to  smooth  matters 
down  a  trifle.  I  do  not  mean  punishment  in 
the  generally  accepted  term,  but  do  you  think  it 
wholly  wise  to  let  the  girls  feel  that  they  can  do 
such  things  and,  in  a  measure,  find  them 
condoned  ?  " 

"  Do  you  think  that  forbidding  them  would 
put  an  end  to  them  ?  " 

"  Merely  forbidding  might  not  do  so,  but  ex- 
acting some  penalty  for  such  disobedience  would 
probably  make  them  think  twice  before  they 
disobeyed  again." 

"  Did  they  disobey  this  time  ?  "  Miss  Preston 
asked  quietly. 

Mrs.  Stone  looked  a  trifle  disconcerted  as  she 
answered : 

99 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Possibly  it  was  not  direct  disobedience,  but 
it  certainly  savored  of  deceit." 

"  I  should  be  glad  to  have  you  ask  any  girl 
who  has  become  a  member  of  that  comical  C.  C. 
C.  if  she  thinks  she  has  been  guilty  of  deceit, 
and  I  '11  venture  to  say  that  she  will  look  you 
squarely  in  the  eyes  and  say :  '  Deceit !  How 
could  thai,  fun  be  deceitful  ? ' 

"  Do  you  not  think  that  it  may  lead  to  other 
undesirable  lines  of  conduct  ?  " 

"  It  may  lead  to  other  sorts  of  innocent  fun," 
was  the  dry  remark.  "Mrs.  Stone,  were  you 
ever  young?  Surely,  you  have  not  forgotten 
what  the  world  looked  like  then.  Was  n't  it 
invariably  the  thing  you  were  least  expected  to 
do  that  it  gave  you  the  most  satisfaction  to  do  ? 
Listen  to  me  one  moment,  for,  while  I  appreciate 
your  sincere  interest  in  my  work  and  myself,  I 
cannot  allow  you  to  run  off  with  the  idea  that 
I  regard  my  girls  as  prone  to  deceitful  actions. 
It  is  just  fun,  pure  and  simple,  and  the  natural 
result  of  happy,  healthy  girlhood.  Far  better 


IOO 


' THEY    COULD   NEVER  DECEIVE  ME 

let  it  have  a  safe  vent  than  try  to  suppress  it, 
and  take  very  strong  chances  of  directing  it  into 
less  desirable  channels.  At  the  worst,  a  deranged 
stomach  can  follow,  and  a  glass  of  bi-carbonate 
of  soda-water  is  a  simple  remedy,  if  not  an  over- 
delightful  one.  I  knew  all  about  the  feast  several 
days  ago,  and  took  my  own  way  of  letting  the 
girls  know  that  I  'd  found  it  out.  It  was  no  use 
to  forbid  it  for  that  night,  for,  just  as  sure  as 
fate,  they  would  have  planned  it  for  another, 
and  devoured  a  lot  of  stuff  far  less  wholesome 
than  the  contents  of  Toinette's  box  and  my  tub. 
As  it  was,  we  all  had  a  good  time,  and  I  '11 
warrant  you  that  the  next  time  the  C.  C.  C.'s 
meet  I  '11  get  a  hint  regarding  the  tub,  at  any- 
rate." 

"  Perhaps  it  will  prove  so.  I  trust  so,  at  all 
events.  You  are  a  far  wiser  woman  than  I  am." 

"Perhaps  no  wiser,  but  better  able  to  recall 
the  things  which  helped  to  make  my  girlhood 
a  sunny  one,  and  school  frolics  played  no  small 
part  in  them." 

101 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  I  can  but  hope  that  the  girls  will  refrain 
from  practicing  deceit.  Of  course,  they  cannot 
deceive  me ;  no  girl  has  ever  yet  succeeded  in 
doing  so,  although  many  have  tried  to.  But  I 
can  invariably  detect  the  sham,  and  meet  it  suc- 
cessfully." 

"I  hope  you  may  never  find  yourself  un- 
done," said  Miss  Preston,  with  a  laugh.  "  Girls 
are  pretty  quick-witted  creatures." 

Girls  are  not  blind  to  their  elders'  weaknesses 
and  pet  delusions,  and  it  was  an  understood 
thing  among  them  all  that  Mrs.  Stone  was 
easily  "  taken  in,"  to  use  their  own  expression. 
Consequently,  they  told  her  things,  and  laid 
innocent  little  traps  for  her  to  walk  into,  such 
as  they  would  never  have  thought  of  doing  for  a 
more  wide-awake  teacher,  or,  at  least,  one  who 
did  not  make  such  a  strong  point  of  her  power 
of  discernment. 

It  was  the  very  night  after  the  Caps  and 
Capers  escapade  that  the  girls  were  gathered  in  the 
upper  hall  talking  about  the  previous  night's  fun. 


102 


THEY  COULD  NEVER  DECEIVE  ME 

"  It  's  no  use  talking ;  you  can't  get  ahead  of 
Miss  Preston,"  said  one  of  the  older  girls.  "You 
may  think  you  have,  and  feel  aglow  clear  down 
to  the  cockles  of  your  heart,  then — whew !  in 
she  walks  upon  you  as  cool  as — " 

"Ice  cream!"  burst  in  another  girl.  "To 
my  dying  day,  girls,  I  shall  never  forget  that 
red  ghost." 

"  How  did  she  ever  find  it  out,  I  'd  like  to 
know,"  asked  Toinette.  "  Not  a  soul  said  a 
word,  and  my  box  did  n't  come  till  the  very  last 
minute.  I  hardly  had  time  to  let  the  girls  know, 
and  how  Miss  Preston  ever  got  her  tub  of  cream 
in  time  is  more  than  I  can  puzzle  out.  Maybe 
Mrs.  Stores  had  it  on  hand." 

"  Mrs.  Stores !  Yes,  I  guess  so,"  cried  the 
girls,  scornfully.  "  You  don't  for  one  moment 
suppose  that  she  would  let  us  have  a  whole  tub 
of  ice  cream,  do  you  ?  Not  much,"  said  Lou 
Perry. 

"  Why,  if  Miss  Preston  wanted  it  it  would 
be  different,  you  see,"  answered  Toinette. 

103 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  No,  it  would  n't,  either.  Miss  Preston  never 
bothers  with  the  housekeeping  or  the  house- 
keeper, although  she  is  always  just  as  lovely 
to  her  as  she  can  be — she  is  to  everybody,  for 
that  matter. 

"  For  my  part,  I  'm  glad  she  found  it  out," 
laughed  Cicely,  "  but  if  I  'd  suspected  before- 
hand that  she  would,  wild  horses  would  n't  have 
dragged  me  into  that  laundry.  It  's  pretty 
easy  not  to  be  afraid  of  such  a  teacher;  she 
seems  just  like  one  of  us.  Was  n't  she  too  funny 
with  that  big  spoon  and  the  red  mask  ?  " 

"Are  all  the  other  teachers  so  quick  to  'catch 
on  ? '  "  asked  Toinette. 

"  Most  of  them  are  sharp  as  two  sticks,"  re- 
plied Ethel,  "  but  they  never  let  on.  There  is 
only  one  who  makes  the  boast  that  she  has  never 
been  deceived  by  any  girl,  and  we  Ve  all  been 
just  wild  to  play  her  some  trick,  only  we  've 
never  yet  hit  upon  a  really  good  one." 

"  You  ought  to  get  Toinette  to  do  the  scene 

from  'Somnambula.'"  said  Cicely,  laughing. 

104 


THEY  COULD  NEVER  DECEIVE  ME 

"What  is  it?  What  is  it?  What  is  it?" 
cried  a  half-dozen  voices. 

"The  funniest  thing  you  ever  saw  in  all  your 
born  days,"  said  Cicely. 

"Oh,  tell  us  about  it;  please,  do,"  begged  the 
girls. 

"  Let  her  do  it  for  you ;  it  will  be  ten  times 
funnier  than  telling  it." 

"When  will  you  do  it?" 

"  To-night,  if  I  can  manage  it ;  it  will  be  a 
good  time  after  last  night's  cut-up." 

I—Caps  and  Capers.  105 


CHAPTER  XI 
"LA  SOMNAMBULA" 

WHEN  the  bell  for  retiring  rang  at  half- 
past  nine   that  night,  it   produced   a 
most  remarkable  effect,  for,  instead  of 
suggesting  snug  beds  and  dream-land,  it  seemed 
instantly  to  banish  any  desire  for  sleep  which 
the  previous  study  hour  from  eight  to  nine  had 
aroused  in  several  of  the  girls. 

They  all  went  to  their  rooms,  to  be  sure,  but 
once  within  them  a  startling  change  took  place. 
Instead  of  undressing  like  wise  young  people, 
they  slipped  off  their  dresses,  and  put  on  their 
night-dresses  over  the  rest  of  their  clothing,  then 
all  crawled  into  bed  to  await  the  first  act  of 
"  La  Somnambula." 

They  had  barely  gotten  settled  when  footsteps 
107 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

were  heard  coming  softly  down  the  corridor,  as 
though  the  feet  taking  the  steps  were  encased 
in  wool  slippers,  and  the  owner  of  those  feet 
wished  to  avoid  being  heard.  A  few  steps  were 
taken,  then  a  pause  made  to  listen,  then  on  went 
the  cat-like  tread  from  door  to  door. 

Toinette's  and  Cicely's  rooms  communicated, 
and  just  beyond,  with  another  communicating 
door,  was  the  room  occupied  by  Ruth  and  Edith, 
but  the  door  was  always  fastened.  Perhaps 
Miss  Preston  considered  three  communicating 
rooms  altogether  too  convivial,  and  decided  that 
"an  ounce  of  prevention  was  always  worth  a 
pound  of  cure." 

As  the  stealthy  footfalls  passed  on  down  the 
hall,  a  light  tap  fell  upon  Toinette's  door,  and, 
springing  out  of  bed,  she  flew  to  give  a  corre- 
sponding tap,  and  listen  for  what  might  follow. 

"  Sh-h !  "  came  in  a  whisper  from  the  other 
side. 

"  Yes,"  was  the  low  reply. 

"  Did  you  hear  the  *  Princess '  walk  down  the 

1 08 


LA    SOMNAMBULA 

hull  ?  "  The  Princess  was  the  big  Maltese  house 
cat,  and  a  privileged  character. 

"  A  pretty  big  cat,"  was  whispered  back. 

"  That  was  Mother  Stone,  and  she  was  just  as 
anxious  to  avoid  being  heard  by  Miss  Preston 
as  she  was  anxious  to  hear  what  might  be  going 
on  in  our  rooms.  If  Miss  Preston  caught  her 
listening  at  anybody's  door,  she  would  be  angrier 
than  if  we  sat  up  all  night." 

"  What  does  she  think  we  're  up  to,  anyway?  " 
whispered  Toinette. 

"  No  telling,  but  she  knows  we  had  a  frolic 
last  night  and  is  on  the  lookout  for  another 
to-night,  I  guess." 

"Maybe  she  won't  look  in  vain,"  laughed 
Toinette,  softly. 

Twelve  o'clock  had  just  been  struck  by  the 
tall  clock  in  the  lower  hall,  when  a  white  figure 
walked  slowly  down  the  corridor.  Her  hair 
fell  in  long,  waving  ringlets  far  below  her  waist, 
her  pretty  white  hands  were  outstretched  in  front 

of  her,  and  thegreat  eyes,  wide  open,  stared  straight 

109 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

before  her  with  a  strange,  unseeing  stare.  As 
she  walked  along  she  whispered  softly  to  herself, 
but  the  words  were  hardly  audible.  On  she 
went,  through  the  long  corridor,  down  the  little 
side  hall,  which  led  to  the  pantry  below,  still 
muttering  in  that  uncanny  manner. 

It  had  long  been  a  standing  joke  in  the  school 
that  Mrs.  Stone  slept  like  a  cat,  with  one  eye 
open  and  one  ear  alert  for  every  sound,  for  she 
was  continually  hearing  burglars,  or  marauders 
of  some  sort  or  other.  So  it  is  not  surprising 
that  before  that  ghost  had  gone  very  far  another 
white  figure  popped  its  head  out  into  the  hall 
and  uttered  a  smothered  exclamation  at  sight  of 
number  one. 

"  Dear  me !  dear  me ! "  she  murmured,  "  my 
suspicions  were  not  amiss.  Poor,  dear  Marion,  is 
so  very  self-confident.  I  w&s  sure  the  last  night's 
folly  would  lead  to  something  else.  Such  is 
invariably  the  case,"  and  she  followed  rapidly 
after  the  figure  which  was  just  vanishing  around 
the  turn  in  the  lower  hall. 


LA    SOMNAMBULA 

"Those  children  are  certainly  planning 
another  supper,  and,  what  is  far  worse,  are  adding 
to  the  discredit  of  such  an  act  by  resorting  to 
dishonest  means  of  procuring  the  wherewithal 
for  it.  Oh,  it  is  shocking,  shocking  I  And  yet 
Marion  cannot  be  convinced  that  her  girls  are 
capable  of  deceit.  Poor  child,  poor  child,  it  is 
fortunate  for  her  that  there  is  someone  at  hand 
to  come  to  her  rescue  at  such  a  crisis,"  and  Mrs. 
Stone  reached  the  bottom  of  the  stairs  just  as  the 
evil-intentioned  ghost  slipped  into  the  house- 
keeper's pantry. 

"  Really,  I  must  be  quite  sure  before  I  speak, 
or  I  may  bring  about  still  greater  trouble.  But 
what  can  she  want  here  at  this  hour  of  the  night 
if  it  be  not  some  of  Mrs.  Store's  provisions?" 
and  she  wrung  her  hands  in  despair. 

A  dim  light  burned  in  the  lower  hall,  render- 
ing everything  there  plainly  visible  from  above ; 
and  if  Mrs.  Stone  had  not  been  so  distressed  by 
that  which  was  before  her,  she  might  have  been 
aware  of  certain  happenings  just  above  her.  Why 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

did  not  some  good  fairy  whisper  in  her  ear  just 
at  that  moment :  "An'  had  you  one  eye  behind 
you,  you  might  see  more  detraction  at  your 
heels  than  fortune  before  you,"  but  there  were 
apparently  none  out  of  Dream  Land. 

As  her  foot  touched  the  lower  step,  five  or  six 
heads  peered  over  the  banister  railing  above, 
and  what  mystery  of  gravitation  prevented  as 
many  bodies  from  toppling  over  after  them  I 
am  unable  to  say/ 

Do  look !  Do  look !  She  is  after  her  full 
tilt,  girls,"  whispered  Cicely.  "  Did  n't  I  tell 
you  it  would  be  the  funniest  thing  you  ever 
saw?" 

"  Sh  !  She  '11  hear  us,  and  the  whole  thing  will 
be  spoilt,"  said  Ethel. 

"No,  indeed,  she  won't,"  answered  Ruth, 
"she  is  too  intent  upon  catching  Toinette." 

"  O,  why  can't  I  stretch  my  neck  out  a  yard 
or  two  so  that  I  may  see  what  is  going  on  in  that 
pantry  ?  Come  on  girls,  I  'm  going  downstairs 
if  I  die  for  it,"  and  down  crept  Lou,  followed  by 


112 


LA    SOMNAMBULA 

all  the  others,  for  there  was  no  lack  of  bed-room 
slippers  at  Sunny  Bank. 

Meantime  Toinette  had  entered  the  store-room, 
and,  going  straight  to  the  corner  where  some 
smoked  hams  and  bacon  were  hanging,  took  a 
monstrous  ham  from  its  hook,  then,  muttering, 
"  Crackers,  too,  crackers,  too,"  opened  the  cracker 
box  and  drew  forth  a  handful. 

Mrs.  Stone  was  thoroughly  scandalized,  but, 
just  as  she  was  about  to  speak,  Toinette  turned 
full  upon  her  and  said : 

"Yes,  I  will  have  some  mustard,  and  a  beef-* 
steak,  and  baked  beans,  please.  Mrs.  Stores 
had  some  on  the  table  to-night." 

By  this  time  Mrs.  Stone  began  to  realize  that 
the  girl  was  not  accountable  for  her  actions,  for 
never  was  there  a  better  bit  of  acting  for  an 
amateur.  Yet  she  dared  not  wake  her,  for  stories 
of  the  serious  harm  which  had  befallen  somnam- 
bulists, when  wakened  suddenly  in  unfamiliar 
surroundings,  flashed  through  her  brain,  and 
she  was  nearly  beside  herself  with  anxiety. 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"What  shall  I  do?  what  shall  I  do?"  she 
said  aloud  in  great  distress ;  and,  as  though  in 
answer  to  her  question,  Toinette  answered : 

"  Go,  tell  Mrs.  Stone  that  she  is  n't  up  to  snuff 
as  much  as  she  thinks  she  is." 

This  was  too  much,  and,  laying  her  hand 
gently  on  Toinette's  arm,  she  said,  softly  : 

"  My  dear  child,  had  n't  you  better  come 
back  upstairs  with  me  ?  " 

Without  changing  her  expression,  Toinette 
replied : 

"  How  oats,  peas,  beans  and  barley  grow, 
nor  you,  nor  I,  nor  Mrs.  Stone  knows,"  and 
began  to  dance  around  in  a  circle  with  her  ham 
tightly  clasped  in  one  arm,  and  the  crackers 
scattering  from  one  end  of  the  pantry  to  the  other. 

Now  thoroughly  alarmed,  and  almost  in  tears, 
Mrs.  Stone  said : 

"Oh,  my  dear,  dear  little  girl,  won't  you 
come  back  to  your  room  with  me  ?  "  and,  grasp- 
ing hold  of  Toinette's  arm,  endeavored  to  lead 

her  from  the  pantry. 

114 


"  GO,   TELL   MRS.   STONE   SHE,   IS  N'T   UP   TO  SHVFF." 


LA    SOMNAMBULA 

But  my  lady  was  having  altogether  too  good 
a  time  to  end  her  frolic  so  soon,  while  the 
audience  upon  the  stairs  were  nearly  dying  from 
their  efforts  not  to  scream.  So,  without  changing 
that  dreadful  stare  which  she  had  maintained 
throughout  her  performance,  she  said,  as  though 
repeating  Mrs.  Stone's  own  words : 

"Come  back — come  back — come  back,  my 
Bonny,  to  me,"  and  turned  to  leave  the  pantry. 
She  had  barely  gotten  outside  the  door,  however, 
when  she  paused,  and,  muttering  something 
about  lemons  and  pickles,  slipped  away  from 
Mrs.  Stone's  grasp  and  disappeared  within  the 
pantry  again. 

Trembling  with  excitement,  Mrs.  Stone  stood 
for  one  instant,  and  then  saying,  "  Miss  Preston 
must  be  called,  Miss  Preston  must  be  called," 
turned  and  literally  flew  up  the  stairs,  for  once 
too  lost  to  everything  but  the  matter  in  hand 
to  be  aware  of  anything  else,  which  was  certainly 
fortunate  for  the  white-robed  figures,  which  nearly 

fell  over  each  other  in  their  scramble  to  escape. 

117 


CHAPTER   XII 
"HAVE  YOU  NOT  BEEN  DECEIVED  THIS  TIME?" 

WHEN  Miss  Preston  arrived  upon  the 
scene  Toinette  was  serenely  making 
her  way  upstairs,  her  burdens  still  in 
her  arms,  but  supplemented  by  several  lemons 
and  a  bottle  of  pickles.  She  took  no  notice 
whatever  of  the  new  arrival,  but  walked  straight 
to  her  own  room,  and,  placing  her  treasures 
upon  her  bed,  covered  them  carefully  with  her 
bedclothes.  At  this  covert  act  poor  Mrs.  Stone 
gasped  despairingly,  and,  grasping  Miss  Pres- 
ton's arm,  said,  in  a  most  tragic  whisper : 
"  Marion,  Marion,  what  did  I  tell  you  ?  " 

But  "  Marion "  was  very  much  alive  to  the 
situation,  and,  had  not  a  slight  quiver  about 
Toinette's  mouth  while  Mrs.  Stone  was  speaking 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

confirmed  her  suspicions,  some  very  audible 
giggles  from  the  rooms  close  at  hand  would  have 
done  so. 

Having  tucked  her  ham  snugly  to  bed,  Toin- 
ette  proceeded  to  tuck  herself  there,  and,  with  a 
sigh  as  innocent  as  a  tired  infant's,  she  closed 
those  staring  eyes  and  slipped  off  to  the  land  of 
dreams. 

"  Well,  I  think  the  first  act  is  ended,"  said 
Miss  Preston,  with  the  funniest  of  smiles,  "  and 
we  shall  not  have  the  second  to-night,  at  any  rate. 
But  this  one  was  certainly  performed  by  a  star," 
and,  stepping  to  Toinette's  bedside,  she  quietly 
drew  from  beneath  the  covers  the  "dry  stores" 
there  sequestered,  placed  them  upon  the  table, 
and  then  smoothed  the  clothes  carefully  about 
her. 

Mrs.  Stone  began  to  gather  up  the  articles  Miss 
Preston  laid  upon  the  table,  and,  consequently, 
did  not  see  her  slyly  pinch  the  rosy  cheek  rest- 
ing upon  the  pillow  nor  the  flash  of  intelligence 
which  two  big  brown  eyes  sent  back. 


120 


HAVE  YOU  NOT  BEEN  DECEIVED? 

They  then  left  Toinette  to  her  slumbers  (?), 
and,  after  carrying  the  pilfered  articles  back  to 
the  housekeeper's  pantry,  returned  to  Miss  Pres- 
ton's room,  where  Mrs.  Stone  dropped  into  the 
first  chair  that  came  handy.  She  was  as  near 
a  nervous  collapse  as  she  well  could  be,  and 
came  very  close  to  losing  her  temper  when  Miss 
Preston  seated  herself  upon  her  couch,  clasped 
her  hands  before  her,  and  laughed  as  poor  Mrs. 
Stone  had  never  known  her  to  laugh  before. 

"  Why,  Marion  !  Marion  !  "  she  cried.  "Have 
you  taken  leave  of  your  senses?" 

It  was  some  seconds  before  Miss  Preston 
could  control  her  voice  enough  to  reply,  and, 
when  she  did,  it  proved  the  very  last  straw  to 
complete  Mrs.  Stone's  discomfiture,  for  her  words 
were: 

"  Mehitable  Storffe,  had  anyone  told  me  that  I 
was  sheltering  beneath  my  roof- tree  such  a  con- 
summate actress,  I  should  have  been  the  most  sur- 
prised woman  in  Montcliff.  Upon  my  word; 
I  never  saw  anything  better  done." 


121 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"Acting ! "  exclaimed  Mrs.  Stone,  aghast. 
"  You  do  not  for  one  moment  imagine  that  poor 
child  was  acting  ?  Impossible !  Why,  she  was 
as  sound  asleep  as  she  ever  was  in  all  her  life, 
and  there  was  not  the  least  sign  that  she  was  con- 
scious of  my  touch  when  I  took  hold  of  her  arm 
to  lead  her  from  the  pantry.  Do  you  suppose 
it  would  have  been  possible  for  her  to  dissemble 
to  that  extent?  Never!" 

Miss  Preston  did  not  answer,  but  laughed 
softly  again. 

It  was  too  much  for  Mrs.  Stone ;  rising  sud- 
denly to  her  feet,  she  said,  with  asperity :  "  It  is 
useless  for  us  to  discuss  the  matter  further  to- 
night, nay,  this  morning"  looking  at  the  tiny 
clock  ticking  away  upon  Miss  Preston's  desk, 
"  but  I  trust  that  in  broad  daylight  you  may  see 
more  clearly.  For  my  part,  nothing  will  ever 
convince  me  that  that  child  was  deceiving  me ; 
my  knowledge  of  girls  is  too  perfect.  It  was  a 
most  pronounced  case  of  somnambulism,  the  out- 
come of  last  night's  injudicious  eating,  and,  in 


HAVE    YOU    NOT    BEEN    DECEIVED? 

my  opinion,  a  very  alarming  condition,  as  one 
can  never  tell  to  what  it  may  lead.  Her  diges- 
tion may  be  seriously  impaired.  It  is  quite  un- 
safe to  leave  her  alone  to-night,  for  she  may  be 
seized  with  another  attack  at  any  moment.  I 
shall  spend  the  remainder  of  the  night  upon  the 
couch  in  her  room,"  and  away  she  went  to  take 
up  her  sentinel  duty. 

"  It  is  quite  unnecessary,"  called  Miss  Pres- 
ton after  the  retreating  figure,  but  no  heed  was 
given  to  the  words,  and  when  Toinette  waked  in 
the  morning  what  was  her  surprise  to  find  Mrs. 
Stone  bending  over  her  asking,  in  the  most  so- 
licitous of  voices,  if  she  were  feeling  quite  well. 

For  a  moment  Toinette  was  unable  to  take  in 
the  situation,  but  her  wits  got  into  working  order 
pretty  quickly,  and  only  her  quivering  lips 
would  have  betrayed  her  to  a  more  discerning 
person.  Mrs.  Stone,  however,  saw  nothing  but  an 
inclination  to  weep,  and,  stooping  over  Toinette, 
said,  soothingly:  "There,  there,  dear,  don't  hurry 

8— Cafs  and  Capers.  123 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

to  rise,  you  are  a  little  nervous  this  morning 
and  ought  to  rest." 

But  Toinette  was  at  the  breakfast  table  as 
promptly  as  anyone,  and  as  she  took  her  seat 
she  gave  a  quick  glance  toward  Miss  Preston ; 
but  that  astute  woman  was  pouring  cream  into 
her  coffee-cup.  An  hour  later,  when  all  were 
scurrying  about  getting  ready  for  the  walk  to 
the  schoolhouse,  which  was  situated  several 
blocks  from  the  home  house  and  its  adjacent  cot- 
tages, Toinette  came  face  to  face  with  Miss  Pres- 
ton in  one  of  the  upper  halls.  Both  stopped 
short,  looked  each  other  squarely  in  the  eyes, 
and  said  nothing.  Then  Miss  Preston's  eyes 
began  to  smile,  and  her  mouth  followed  their  ex- 
ample, and,  placing  one  finger  under  Toinette's 
chin,  she  said : 

"  I  am  forced  to  admit  that  it  was  one  of  the 
funniest  things  I  've  ever  seen,  and  extremely 
well  done,  but  it  scared  Mrs.  Stone  nearly  to 
death ;  so,  please,  don't  favor  us  with  the  second 

act." 

124 


HAVE  YOU  NOT  BEEN  DECEIVED? 

And  that  was  the  only  allusion  ever  made  by 
Miss  Preston  to  the  midnight  ramble,  nor  was 
it  ever  repeated  for  Mrs.  Stone's  benefit,  al- 
though nothing  could  ever  have  persuaded  the 
good  lady  that  she  had  been  the  victim  of  a  hoax 
that  night. 

It  would  have  been  difficult  to  find  a  more 
consummate  teacher  than  Miss  Preston,  or  one 
who,  without  their  ever  suspecting  it,  could  so 
bring  her  girls  up  to  the  mark.  It  was  a  rare 
exception  when  she  failed  to  accomplish  her  aim, 
and  her  tact  was  truly  wonderful.  There  was 
rarely  a  harsh  word  spoken,  although  Miss  Pres- 
ton could  speak  sharply  enough  when  occasion 
required.  But  she  seldom  felt  that  it  did.  She 
had  most  unique  methods,  and  they  proved  won- 
derfully successful.  Then,  too,  some  very  old-fash- 
ioned ideas  were  firmly  imbedded  in  her  mind, 
which  in  the  present  day  and  age  are  often  for- 
gotten. That  bad  spelling  is  a  disgrace  to  any 

girl  was  one  of  these,  and  most  nobly  did  she 

125 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

labor  to  make  such  a  disgrace  impossible  for  any 
of  her  girls. 

Knowing  how  cordially  human  nature  detests 
doing  the  very  thing  best  for  it,  she  never  had 
regular  spelling  lessons  in  the  school,  but  twice 
a  week  every  girl  in  it,  big  and  little  alike, 
gathered  in  the  large  assembly  room  to  choose 
sides  and  spell  each  other  down.  So  irresistibly 
funny  were  these  spelling  matches,  and  so  ad- 
mirably did  they  display  Miss  Preston's  peculiar 
power  over  the  girls,  and  their  response  to  her 
wonderful  magnetism,  that  I  think  they  deserve 

a  chapter  to  themselves. 

126 


CHAPTER   XIII 

ENGLISH   AS   SHE   IS    SPELLED 

THE  last  half  hour  before  recess  on  Wed- 
nesdays and  Fridays  was    the  time  set 
aside  for  the  spelling  matches.    On  Wed- 
nesday the  words  were  chosen  at  random,  some- 
times from  history,  sometimes  from  geography, 
again  from  something  which  the  classes  had  been 
reading;   but  Friday's  words   were    invariably 
a  surprise. 

One  morning,  immediately  after  the  opening 
exercises  were  concluded,  Miss  Preston  rang  her 
bell,  and,  when  the  girls  were  all  attention,  said  : 
"It  will  be  well  for  those  girls  who  are  to 
lead  the  opposing  sides  of  the  spelling  match  to- 
day to  choose  with  exceptional  acumen — An- 

127 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

nabel,  spell  that  word !  So  suddenly  had  the 
command  been  sprung  upon  her  that,  whatever 
knowledge  poor  Annabel  might  have  possessed 
five  seconds  before,  promptly  flew  straight  out  of 
her  head,  and  she  answered  : 

"Ackumen." 

"  Sorry  I  have  n't  time  to  pass  it  on  just  now, 
but  I  '11  reserve  that  honor.  As  I  was  saying, 
the  heads  had  best  keep  their  wits  wide-awake, 
for  I  'in  going  to  choose  the  words  from  a  highty 
scientific  and  instructive  volume  to-day.  It  is 
called  "How  to  Feed  Children,"  and  in  this  you 
will  observe  that  I  have  a  double  object  in  view: 
to  teach  you  which  words,  as  well  as  the  sort  of 
food,  to  be  digested.  Wholesome  instruction, 
my  dears ;  and  now  to  work,  every  woman  Jill 
of  you." 

At  ten-thirty  all  were  again  assembled  in  the 
big  room,  and  a  lively  choosing  of  sides  ensued. 
It  was  not  by  any  means  invariably  the  older 
girls  who  could  spell  best,  for  often  some  of  the 

younger  ones  led  them  a  fine  race. 

128 


ENGLISH    AS    SHE    IS    SPELLED 

Taking  up  the  brilliantly  bound  little  book, 
Miss  Preston  said : 

"  Now,  my  friends,  I  hope  you  will  look  upon 
the  cover  of  this  book  as  a  brilliant  and  rosy 
example  of  what  I  expect,  and,  I  beg  of  you,  do 
not  disappoint  me,"  holding  up  the  bright  red 
book  for  the  inspection  of  all.  "  Do  not  become 
excited,  but  learn  to  take  a  'philosophical'  view 
of  it."  Miss  Preston  paused,  and  so  well  did 
the  girls  understand  her  original  way  of  doing 
things  that  "philosophical"  was  at  once 'essayed. 
The  first  attempt  resulted  in  " philosopical" 

"A  little  too  suggestive  of  milk-toast,  I  'm 
afraid,  Marion.  We  must  have  our  philosophy 
upon  a  sound  basis.  Next." 

Several  words  passed  successfully  down  the 
line  until  "course "was  given,  and  when  that 
was  spelled  "cource"  Miss  Preston's  face  was  a 
study. 

"  That  which  we  are  most  inclined  to  accept 
as  a  matter  of  course  we  may  be  sure  will  prove 

a  matter  of  mortification  to  us.     Katherine,  you 

129 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

are  given  to  poetic  flights.  Who  was  it  that  said : 
'The  course  of  true  love  never  did  run  smooth?" 
He  would  have  had  an  opportunity  to  learn  that 
there  were  also  other  courses  which  did  not  run 
smoothly  had  he  followed — '  pedagogy.' " 

This  proved  a  stumbling-block  for  the  first 
girl,  but  the  next  one  spelled  it  correctly. 

"  You  see,  Alma,  that  even  the  road  thereto 
has  its  pitfalls,  so  take  warning." 

"  Catch  me  ever  teaching,"  was  the  half- 
audible  reply,  but  softly  as  it  was  spoken  sharp 
ears  caught  it. 

"  Posterity  will  be  grateful  for  the  blessings 
in  store  for  it,  '  undoubtedly.' ' 

The  word  fell  to  a  little  girl,  but  was  rattled 
off  as  quick  as  a  wink,  to  Miss  Preston's  great 
amusement,  for  the  child  was  an  ambitious  little 
body  who  hated  to  be  outdone  by  the  big  girls. 

"  Desirability "  was  the  next  word,  and  was 
given  to  one  of  the  largest,  although  by  no  means 
the  most  brilliant,  girls  in  the  school. 

She  hesitated  a  moment,  and  then  said :  "  If 
130 


ENGLISH    AS    SHE    IS    SPELLED 

desire  is  spelled  d-e-s-i-r-e,  I  suppose  the  other 
end  of  it  will  be  a-b-i-1-i-t-y." 

"A  quality  in  which  you  are  lacking,"  was 
the  instantaneous  retort.  "  If  you  desired  it 
more,  your  ability  would  be  greater." 

When  desirability  had  been  successfully  dealt 
with,  ten  or  more  words  were  happily  disposed 
of,  then  came  another  poser  in  the  form  of 
'  physiognomical,'  and  the  groans  which  greeted 
it  foretold  its  fate. 

"  What  does  it  mean,  anyway,  Miss  Preston  ?  " 
asked  one  girl. 

"  Well,  there  is  more  than  one  way  of  telling 
you  its  meaning,  but  I  believe  in  simple  explana- 
tions, so  I  will  say,  that  when  you  all  rush  off 
to  the  cloak-room  at  one  o'clock  that  it  would  be 
well  for  you  to  observe  carefully  the  expression 
upon  the  other  girl's  face  when  you  throw  down 
her  hat  and  coat  in  your  eagerness  to  get  your 
own  first.  You  will  then,  doubtless,  have  an  ex- 
cellent opportunity  to  form  a  correct  idea  of  the 
meaning  of  physiognomical.  Then  you  may 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

come  and  tell  me  whether  you  consider  her 
character  an  angelic  or  impish  one." 

How  well  Miss  Preston  was  aware  of  their 
besetting  sins,  and  how  shrewdly  did  she  use 
them  to  their  undoing. 

I  should  never  dare  tell  the  wonderful  com- 
binations of  letters  which  were  brought  together 
ere  that  dreadful  word  was  spelled  correctly ;  but 
such  a  rapid  sitting  down  followed  that  a  stranger 
coming  suddenly  upon  them  might  have  supposed 
that  Miss  Preston's  girls  were  fainting  one  after 
another. 

About  fifty  words,  all  told,  were  spelled  with 
more  or  less  success,  and  then  came  the  grand 
summing  up,  and  those  girls  who  could  not  yield 
a  clean  record  from  beginning  to  end  had  to  pay 
the  penalty. 

Not  a  very  severe  one,  to  be  sure,  but  one  they 
were  not  likely  to  forget,  for  each  word  that  they 
had  misspelled  was  written  upon  a  good-sized 
piece  of  paper  and  pinned  upon  their  breasts 
"as  a  reward  of  demerit,"  Miss  Preston  told 

132 


ENGLISH    AS    SHE    IS    SPELLED 

them,  and,  although  it  was  all  done  in  fun  and 
joked  and  laughed  over  at  the  time,  each  girl 
knew  that  those  words  must  be  thoroughly  com- 
mitted to  memory  before  the  Wednesday  spelling 
match  began  its  lively  session,  or  her  report  at 
the  end  of  the  term  would  be  lacking  in  com- 
pleteness. 

And  so,  between  "jest  and  earnest,"  did  Miss 
Preston  handle  her  girls,  drawing  by  gentleness 
from  a  sensitive  nature,  by  firmness  from  a  care- 
less one,  by  sarcasm  (and  woe  to  the  girl  who 
provoked  it,  for  it  was,  truly,  "  like  a  polished 
razor  keen  ")  from  a  flippant,  and  by  one  of  her 
rare,  sweet  smiles  from  the  ambitious  all  that  was 
best  to  be  drawn. 

Toinette  was  naturally  a  remarkably  bright 
girl,  and  possessed  qualities  of  mind  which  only 
required  gentle  suggestions  to  develop  their  latent 
powers.  Refined  and  delicate  by  nature,  keen 
of  comprehension,  she  slipped  into  her  proper 
niche  directly  way  was  made  for  her,  and  filled 
it  to  her  own  credit  and  the  satisfaction  of  others. 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Nor  did  it  take  Miss  Preston  long  to  discover 
that  a  delicately  strung  instrument  had  been 
placed  in  her  hands,  and  that  it  must  be  touched 
with  skillful  fingers  if  its  best  notes  were  to  be 
given  forth. 

The  weeks  slipped  away,  and  winter,  as  though 
to  pay  up  for  its  tardy  arrival,  came  in  earnest, 
bringing  in  February  the  heavy  snowstorms 
one  looks  for  much  earlier  in  the  season  in  this 
part  of  the  globe.  The  girls  hailed  them  with 
wild  demonstrations,  for  snow  meant  sleigh-rides, 
and  it  is  a  frosty  old  codger  who  can  frown  and 
grumble  at  the  sound  of  sleigh-bells. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
"JINGLE  BELLS,  JINGLE  BELLS  I " 

ONE  morning  early  in  February  the  girls 
looked  out  of  their  windows  to  behold  a 
wonderful  new  world — a  white   one  to 
replace  the  dull  gray  one,  which  would  have 
made   their   spirits   sympathetically  gray,   per- 
haps, had   they  been   older.     But,  happily,  it 
must  be  a  very  smoky  gray  indeed   that  can 
depress  fifteen. 

"Quick,  Edith,  come  and  look!"  and  then, 
flying  across  the  room,  Ruth  thumped  upon 
Toinette's  door,  and  called  out :  "  Sleigh-bells  I 
Sleigh-bells !  Don't  you  hear  them  ?  " 

The  snow  had  fallen  steadily  all  night,  piling 
up  softly  and  silently  the  great  white  mounds, 
covering  up  unsightly  objects,  laying  the  downi- 

'35 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

est  of  coverlids  upon  the  dull  old  world  until  it 
was  hardly  recognizable.  Every  ledge,  every 
branch  and  tiny  twig  held  its  feathery  burden, 
or  shook  it  softly  upon  the  white  mass  covering 
the  ground.  Hardly  a  breath  of  air  stirred,  and 
the  fir  trees  looked  as  though  St.  Nick  had 
visited  them  in  the  night  to  dress  a  tree  for  every 
little  toddler  in  the  land. 

Down,  down,  down  came  the  flakes,  as  though 
they  never  meant  to  stop,  and  as  one  threw  back 
one's  head  to  look  upward  at  the  millions  of  tiny 
feathers  falling  so  gently,  one  seemed  to  float 
upward  upon  fairy  wings  and  sail  away,  away 
into  the  realms  of  the  Snow  Maiden. 

It  was  hard  to  keep  one's  wits  upon  one's  work 
that  day,  and  many  a  stolen  glance  was  given  to 
the  fairy  world  beyond  the  windows  of  the  recita- 
tion-rooms. About  five  o'clock  the  weather 
cleared,  the  sun  setting  in  a  glory  of  crimson  and 
purple  clouds.  An  hour  later  up  came  my  lady 
moon,  to  smile  approval  upon  the  enchanting 
scene  and  hint  all  sorts  of  possibilities. 

136 


JINGLE    BELLS,   JINGLE    BELLS! 

Lou  Cornwall  came  flying  into  Toinette's  room 
just  after  dinner  to  find  it  well  filled  with  seven 
or  eight  others. 

"May  I  come,  too?"  she  asked.  "Oh,  girls,  if 
we  don't  have  a  sleigh-ride  to-morrow,  I  '11  have 
a  conniption  fit  certain  as  the  world." 

"Do  you  always  have  one  when  there  is 
snow?"  asked  Toinette. 

"Which,  a  sleigh-ride  or  a  conniption  fit?" 
laughed  Lou.  "You  'd  better  believe  we  have 
sleigh-rides." 

"You  'd  better  believe!  I  've  been  here  five 
years,  and  we  've  never  missed  one  yet.  Do  you 
remember  the  night  last  winter,  when  we  all  went 
sleighing  and  came  home  at  eleven  o'clock  nearly 
frozen  stiff,  Bess  ?  Whew !  it  was  cold.  When 
we  got  back  we  found  Miss  Preston  making 
chocolate  for  us.  There  she  was  in  her  bedroom 
robe  and  slippers.  She  had  gotten  out  of  bed  to 
do  it  because  she  found  out  at  the  last  minute 
that  that  fat  old  Mrs.  Schmidt  had  gone  poking 
off  to  bed,  and  had  n't  left  a  single  thing  for  us." 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  I  guess  I  do  remember,  and  did  n't  it  taste 
good?"  was  the  feeling  answer. 

"You  were  n't  here  the  year  before,"  said 
Lou.  "  Sit  still,  my  heart!  Shall  I  ever  forget 
it?" 

"What  about  it?  Tell  us!"  cried  the  girls  in 
a  chorus. 

"That  was  the  first  year  Mrs.  Schmidt  was 
here,  and,  thank  goodness,  she  is  n't  here  any 
longer,  and  she  had  n't  learned  as  much  as  she 
learned  afterwards.  My  goodness,  was  n't  she 
stingy?  She  thought  one  egg  ought  to  be  enough 
for  six  girls,  I  believe.  It  took  Miss  Preston 
about  a  year  to  get  her  to  understand  that  we 
were  not  to  be  kept  on  half  rations.  "Well,  that 
night  we  were  expecting  something  extra  fine. 
We  got  it!"  and  Lou  stopped  to  laugh  at  the 
recollection.  "We  rushed  into  the  house,  hun- 
grier than  wolves,  and  ready  to  empty  the  pan- 
try, and  what  do  you  think  we  found  ?  A  lot  of 
after-dinner  coffee  cups  of  very  weak  cocoa,  with 
nary  saucer  to  set  them  in,  and  two  small  crack- 

138 


JINGLE    BELLS,   JINGLE    BELLS! 

ers  apiece.  '  I  was  thinking  you  would  come  in 
hungry,  young  ladies,  so  I  make  you  some  choc- 
olate. You  don't  mind  that  I  have  not  some 
saucers,  it  make  so  many  dishes  for  washing,'  she 
said,  smiling  that  pudgy  smile  of  hers.  Ugh! 
I  can't  bear  to  think  of  it  even  to  this  day,  and 
she  was  ten  million  times  better  before  she  left 
last  spring.  That  was  the  reason  Miss  Preston 
took  matters  into  her  own  hands  the  next  time, 
I  guess." 

Just  then  a  tap  came  at  the  door,  and  Miss 
Preston  put  her  head  in  to  ask : 

"Can  you  girls  do  extra  hard  work  between 
this  and  eight  o'clock  ?  " 

Had  she  entertained  any  doubts  of  their  ability 
to  individually  do  the  work  of  three,  the  shout 
which  answered  her  in  the  affirmative  would 
have  banished  them  forever,  for  the  girls  were 
not  slow  to  guess  that  some  surprise  was  afoot. 

"Very  well,  I  '11  trust  you  all  to  prepare  to- 
morrow's lessons  without  exchanging  an  unneces- 
sary word,  and  at  eight  o'clock  I  '11  ring  my  bell, 

9 — Caps  and  Ca£trs.  j 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

and  then  you  must  all  put  on  extra  warm  wraps 
and  go  out  on  the  piazza  to — look  at  the  moon. 
I  shall  not  expect  you  to  come  in  till  ten- 
thirty." 

As  the  last  word  was  uttered  Miss  Preston  met 
her  doom,  for  five  girls  pounced  upon  her,  bore 
her  to  the  couch  and  hugged  her  till  she  cried 
for  mercy. 

"Come  with  us,  oh!  come  with  us,"  they  cried. 
"It  will  be  twice  as  nice  if  you  '11  come!" 

"Come  where?  Do  you  suppose  I've  lived 
all  these  years  and  never  seen  the  moon  ?  "  and 
laughing  merrily  she  slipped  away  from  them, 
only  pausing  to  add :  "  It  is  ten  minutes  of 
seven  now." 

The  hint  was  enough,  and  not  a  girl  "  got 
left "  that  night. 

At  eight  o'clock  a  silvery  ting-a-ling  was 
heard,  and  never  was  bell  more  promptly  re- 
sponded to.  Had  it  been  a  fire  alarm  the  rooms 
could  not  have  been  more  quickly  emptied. 

The  moonlight  made  all  outside  nearly  as 
140 


JINGLE    BELLS,   JINGLE    BELLS! 

bright  as  day,  and  when  the  girls  went  out  upon 
the  porch  they  found  three  huge  sleighs,  with 
four  horses  each,  waiting  to  whirl  them  over  the 
shining  roads  for  miles.  Miss  Preston  did  not 
make  one  of  the  party,  but  Miss  Howard  was  a 
welcome  substitute,  for,  next  to  Miss  Preston,  the 
girls  loved  her  better  than  any  of  the  other 
teachers,  and  Toinette  was  sorely  divided  in  her 
mind  as  to  which  she  was  learning  to  love  the  better. 

Off  they  started,  singing,  laughing  at  nothing, 
calling  merrily  to  all  they  overtook,  or  passed, 
and  sending  the  school  yell,  which  Miss  Howard 
had  made  up  upon  the  spur  of  the  moment  for 
them, 

"  Hoo-rah-ray !     Hoo-rah-ray ! 
Sunny  Bank;  Montcliff, 

U.  S.  A., 

out  upon  the  frosty  air,  until  the  very  hills  rang 
with  the  cry,  and  flung  it  back  in  merry  echoes. 

Miss  Howard's  sleigh  led  the  van,  and  one  or 
two  of  the  girls  had  clambered  up  to  ride  upon 
the  high  front  seat  with  the  driver,  a  sturdy  old 

141 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Irishman,  who  would  have  driven  twenty  horses 
all  night  long  to  please  any  of  Miss  Preston's 
girls.  Ruth  sat  beside  him,  with  Toinette  next 
her,  and  Edith  was  squeezed  against  the  outer 
edge.  But  who  cares  about  being  squeezed  under 
such  circumstances  ?  It 's  more  fun. 

The  snow  had  fallen  so  lightly  that  sometimes 
the  runners  cut  through  slightly;  but,  all  things 
considered,  the  sleighing  was  very  good.  Still, 
the  driver  kept  the  horses  well  in  hand,  for  they 
were  good  ones  and  ready  to  respond  to  a  word. 
Moreover,  the  hilarity  behind  them  seemed  to 
have  proved  infectious,  for  every  now  and  again 
a  leader  or  a  wheeler  would  prance  about  as 
though  joining  in  the  fun,  and  presently  another 
animal  became  infected  and  wanted  to  prance, 
too.  Had  she  not,  the  next  chapter  need  not 
have  been  written. 

142 


CHAPTER  XV 
"PRIDE  GOETH  BEFORE  A  FALL" 

MORE  than  five  miles  had  slipped  away 
under  those  swiftly-moving  runners  ere 
Ruth  was  suddenly  seized  with  a  desire 
to  emulate  a  famous  charioteer  of  olden  time, 
one  "  Phseton,  of  whom  the  histories  have  sung, 
in  every  meter,  and  every  tongue,"  if  a  certain 
poet  may  be  relied  upon.     So,  turning  a  beguil- 
ing face  toward  the  unsuspecting  Michael  beside 
her,  she  said  : 

"You  r'e  a  fine  driver,  are  n't  you,  Michael  ?" 
"  'T  is  experience  ivery  man  nades ;  I  've  had 
me  own,"  observed  Michael,  complacently. 
"  It  must  be  very  hard  to  drive  four  horses  at 


once." 


"Anny  one  what  kin    droive  two  dacently 
143 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

should  be  able  enough  to  handle  four ;  't  is  not 
the  number  of  horses,  but  the  sinse  at  the  other 
ind  av  the  reins." 

"Is  that  so?  I  thought  it  needed  a  strong 
man  to  drive  so  many." 

"  Indade,  no ;  it  does  not  that.  I  Ve  seen  a 
schmall,  little  man,  hardly  bigger  than  yerself, 
takin'  six  along  with  the  turn  av  his  hand." 

"Could  he  hold  them  if  they  started  to  go 
fast?" 

"  Certain  as  the  woirld,  he  cud  do  that  same. 
'T  was  meself  that  taught  him  the  thrick  av  it. 
'T  is  easy  larnt." 

"  Then  teach  me  right  now,  will  you  ?  " 

Poor  Michael,  he  saw  when  it  was  too  late 
that  boasting  is  dangerous  work,  but  to  refuse 
anything  to  "  wan  av  the  young  ladies  "  never 
for  an  instant  occurred  to  him.  Probably  had 
he  asked  Miss  Howard's  consent  he  would  have 
been  spared  complying  with  a  request  which  his 
better  judgment  questioned,  but  that  did  not 
occur  to  him,  either,  so,  giving  one  apprehensive 

144 


PRIDE    GOETH    BEFORE    A    FALL 

glance  behind  him  at  the  twenty  or  more  pas- 
sengers in  the  sleigh,  he  placed  the  reins  in 
Ruth's  hands,  adjusting  them  in  the  most  scien- 
tific manner. 

They  were  skimming  along  over  a  beautiful 
bit  of  road  with  a  thick  fir  wood  upon  one  side 
and  open  fields  upon  the  other.  The  road  was 
level  as  a  floor,  and  no  turn  would  be  made  for 
fully  half  a  mile.  Horses  know  so  well  the  dif- 
ference between  their  own  driver's  touch  and  a 
stranger's  hand,  and  the  four  whose  reins  Ruth 
now  held  were  not  dullards.  They  had  been 
going  along  at  a  steady  round  trot,  with  no 
thought  of  making  the  pace  a  livelier  one,  but 
directly  the  reins  passed  out  of  Michael's  hands 
the  spirit  of  mischief,  ever  uppermost  in  Ruth, 
flew  like  an  electric  fluid  straight  through  those 
four  reins,  and,  in  less  time  than  it  takes  to  tell 
about  it,  those  horses  had  made  up  their  minds  to 
add  a  little  to  the  general  hilarity  behind  them. 

The  change  was  scarcely  perceptible  at  first, 
but  little  by  little  they  increased  their  pace,  till 

US 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

they  were  fairly  flying  over  the  ground.  Not 
one  whit  did  the  girls  in  the  sleigh  object ;  the 
faster  the  better  for  them.  The  sleighs  behind 
did  their  best  to  keep  up,  but  no  such  horses 
were  in  the  livery  stable  as  the  four  harnessed 
to  Michael's  sleigh,  for  Michael  was  the  trusted 
of  the  trusted. 

But  he  was  growing  very  uneasy,  and,  leaning 
down  close  to  Ruth,  said  :  "  Ye'd  better  be  let- 
tin*  me  take  thini  now,  Miss.  We  've  the  turn 
to  make  jist  beyant." 

"O,  I  can  make  it  all  right;  you  know  you 
said  that  anybody  who  drives  two  horses  decently 
could  drive  four  just  as  well,  and  I  've  driven 
papa's  always." 

"Yis,  yis,"  said  Michael  quickly,  seeing  when 
too  late  that  he  had  talked  to  his  own  undoing, 
"  but  ye  'd  better  be  lettin'  me  handle  thim  be 
moonlight ;  't  is  deceptive,  moonlight  is,"  and  he 
reached  to  take  the  reins  from  her.  But  alas! 
empires  may  be  lost  by  a  second's  delay,  and  a 
second  was  responsible  for  much  now. 

146 


I'  PRIDE    GOETH    BEFORE    A    FALL 

As  Michael  reached  for  the  reins  the  turn  was 
reached  also,  and  where  is  the  livery  stable 
horse  that  does  not  know  every  turn  toward 
home  even  better  than  his  driver,  be  the  driver 
the  oldest  in  that  section  of  the  country !  Around 
whirled  the  leaders,  and  hard  upon  them  came 
the  wheelers,  and  a-lack-a-day !  hard,  very  hard, 
upon  a  huge  stone  at  the  corner  came  the  runner 
of  the  front  bob. 

Had  the  whole  sleighful  been  suddenly  plunged 
into  a  hundred  cubic  feet  of  hydrogen  gas, 
sound  could  not  have  ceased  more  abruptly  for 
one  second,  and  then  there  arose  to  the  thousands 
of  little  laughing  stars  and  their  dignified 
mother,  the  moon,  a  howl  which  made  the  welkin 
rng. 

Shall  I  attempt  to  describe  what  had  happened 
in  ,he  drawing  of  a  breath?  A  bob  runner 
was  hopelessly  wrecked ;  two  horses  were  sitting 
upon  their  haunches,  while  two  others  were 
striving  to  prove  to  those  who  were  not  too  much 
occupied  with  their  own  concerns  to  notice  that, 


CAP SAND    CAPERS 

after  all  is  said  and  done,  the  Lord  did  intend 
that  such  animals  should  walk  upon  two  legs  if 
they  saw  fit  to  do  so.  Michael  stood  up  to  his 
middle  in  a  snow-drift ;  Ruth  sat  as  calmly  upon 
a  snow  bank  as  though  she  preferred  it  to  any 
other  seat  she  had  ever  selected,  albeit  she  was 
well-nigh  smothered  by  the  back  and  cushions 
of  her  novel  resting-place ;  Toinette  was  dumped 
heels-over-head  into  the  body  of  the  sleigh, 
where  she  landed  fairly  and  squarely  in  Miss 
Howard's  lap  ;  Edith  hung  on  to  the  seat  railing 
for  dear  life,  and  screamed  as  though  the  lives  of 
all  in  the  sleigh  (or  out  of  it)  depended  upon 

her  summons  for  assistance.     The  sleigh  had  not 

° 

upset,  yet  what  kept  it  in  a  horizontal  position 
must  forever  remain  a  mystery,  and  such  a  heap 
of  scrambling,  squirming,  screaming  girls  AS 
were  piled  up  five  or  six  deep  in  the  bottoir  of 
it  may  never  be  seen  again.  Some  had  5een 
dumped  overboard  outright,  and  were  flouider- 
ing  about  in  the  snow,  which,  happily,  haJsaved 
them  from  serious  harm.  With  the  /inborn 

148 


"  STHICK  TO   YER    HORSES,    MOIK." 
149 


PRIDE    GOETH    BEFORE    A    FALL 

chivalry  of  his  race,  Michael's  first  thoughts 
said :  "  Fly  to  the  rescue  of  the  demoiselles,"  but 
stern  duty  said:  "  Sthick  to  yer  horses,  Moik,  or 
they  11  smash  things  to  smithereens,  and,  bedad, 
I  sthuck  wid  all  me  moight,  or  the  Lord  only 
knows  where  we  'd  all  have  fetched  up  at  that 
same  night,"  he  said,  when  relating  his  experi- 
ences some  hours  later. 

When  excitement  was  at  its  height  the  other 
sleighs  arrived  upon  the  scene,  and  if  there  had 
been  an  uproar  before,  there  was  a  mighty  cry 
abroad  in  the  land  now.  But,  dear  me,  it  is  all 
in  a  lifetime;  so  why  leave  these  floundering 
mortals  piled  up  in  heaps  any  longer?  They 
were  unsnarled  eventually,  gotten  upon  their 
feet  (or  their  neighbors'),  packed  like  sardines 
into  the  two  other  sleighs,  and,  with  six  instead 
of -four  horses  now  drawing  each,  started  home- 
ward, none  the  worse  for  their  spill,  excepting  a 
good  shaking  up,  a  few  handfuls  of  snow  merrily 
forming  rills  and  rivulets  down  their  necks, 
some  badly  battered  hats  and  torn  coats,  and 

'5* 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

one  of  them,  at  least,  with  some  wholesome  les- 
sons regarding  handling  four  frisky  horses  when 
the  air  is  frosty  and  a  number  of  lives  may 
depend  upon  keeping  "top  side  go,  la!" 

'52 


W 


CHAPTER  XVI 

LETTERS 

HEN  the  sleighing  party  reached  home 
they  found  hot  chocolate  and  ginger 
cookies  awaiting  them.  Before  retir- 
ing, Miss  Preston  had  seen  to  it  that  neither 
shivering  nor  hungry  bodies  should  be  tucked 
into  bed  that  night. 

Five  weeks  had  now  sped  away,  and  Toinette 
was  beginning  to  look  upon  her  new  abiding-place 
as  home ;  at  least,  it  was  nearer  to  it  than  any  she 
could  remember.  The  old  life  at  the  Carter 
school  seemed  a  sort  of  nightmare  from  which 
she  had  wakened  to  find  broad  daylight  and 
all  the  miserable  fancies  dispelled. 

She  and  Cicely  were  seated  at  their  desks  one 
afternoon.  It  was  half-past  four  and  study  hour. 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Cicely  was  hard  at  work  upon  her  algebra  les- 
son, but  Toinette  was  writing  a  letter.  This, 
she  knew  quite  well,  was  not  what  she  was  sup- 
posed to  be  doing,  but  the  five  weeks  had  not 
sufficed  to  undo  the  mischief  done  in  seven  years, 
and  she  was  writing  simply  from  a  spirit  of  per- 
versity. There  was  ample  time  to  do  it  during 
her  hours  of  freedom,  but  the  very  fact  of  doing 
it  when  she  knew  full  well  that  she  ought  to  be 
at  work  on  her  German  added  piquancy  to  the 
act.  Moreover,  the  letter  was  to  a  boy  with 
whom  she  had  become  acquainted  while  at  Miss 
Carter's,  and  had  kept  the  acquaintance  a  most 
profound  secret.  Not  that  she  cared  specially 
for  the  boy,  although  he  was  a  jolly  sort  of  chap, 
and  had  been  a  pleasant  companion  during  their 
stolen  interviews,  and  often  smuggled  boxes  of 
candy  and  other  "forbidden  fruit"  into  the  girl's 
possession. 

Still,  at  Miss  Carter's  a  boy  sprouting  angel's 
wings  would  have  been  regarded  in  very  much 
the  same  light  as  though  he  were  sprouting  imp's 


LETTERS 

horns,  and  any  girl  cauglit  talking  to  one — 
much  less  corresponding — would  have  had  a 
very  bad  quarter  of  an  hour,  indeed.  So,  though 
she  did  not  care  two  straws  whether  she  ever 
saw  him  again  or  not,  all  the  wrong-headedness 
which  had  been  so  carefully  fostered  for  the  past 
years  delighted  in  the  thought  that  she  was 
doing  something  which  might  not  be  approved; 
indeed,  from  her  standpoint,  would  be  decidedly 
criticised,  and  to  get  ahead  of  a  teacher  had  been 
the  "slogan"  of  the  Carter  school. 

It  was  the  custom  at  Sunny  Bank  for  the 
teachers  to  go  around  to  the  girls'  rooms  during 
the  study  hour  to  help,  suggest,  or  give  a  little 
"  boost "  over  the  hummocky  places,  so  when  a 
pleasant  voice  asked  at  the  door :  "  Can  I  help 
you  any,  dearies?"  Cicely  answered  from  her 
room : 

"  Oh,  Miss  Howard,  will  you  please  tell  me 
something  about  this  problem  ?  I  am  afraid  my 
head  is  muddled." 

"  To  be  sure,  I  will,"  was  the  cheery  reply, 
155 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

and  Miss  Howard  passed  through  Toinette's  room 
to  Cicely's. 

As  she  did  so  her  dress  created  a  current  of 
air  which  carried  a  paper  from  Toinette's  desk 
almost  to  her  feet.  She  stooped  to  pick  it  up 
and  hand  it  back  to  Toinette,  who  had  sprung 
up  to  catch  it,  and,  as  she  handed  it  to  her,  Miss 
Howard  noted  the  telltale  color  spring  into  the 
girl's  face. 

"  Zephyrus  is  playing  you  tricks,  dear,"  she 
said,  smiling,  and  passed  on  to  Cicely.  After 
giving  her  the  needed  assistance,  she  left  them, 
and  a  little  further  down  the  corridor  met  Miss 
Preston. 

"How  are  my  chicks  progressing,  Miss 
Howard?" 

"  Nicely,  Miss  Preston.  Cicely  needed  a  little 
help  with  a  problem  in  algebra,  but  I  think 
Toinette  needs  a  little  of  yours  in  the  problem  of 
life,"  and  Miss  Howard  went  her  way. 

A  word  to  the  wise  is  sufficient. 

Meanwhile,  the  letter  was  finished,  addressed, 
156 


LETTERS 

and  slipped  into  Toinette's  pocket,  to  be  mailed 
later. 

Ordinarily,  all  letters  were  placed  in  a  small 
basket  to  be  carried  to  the  office  by  the  porter. 
As  Toinette  came  down  the  hall  shortly  before 
dinner  Miss  Preston  was  just  taking  the  letters 
from  the  basket  to  place  them  in  the  porter's 
mailbag. 

"Any  mail  to  go,  dear  ?  "  she  asked. 

"No,  thank  you,  Miss  Preston,"  answered 
Toinette,  and,  jumping  from  the  last  step,  ran 
off  down  the  hall  to  join  Cicely  and  the  other 
girls.  In  jumping  from  the  step  something 
jolted  from  her  pocket,  but,  falling  upon  the 
heavy  rug  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs,  made  no 
sound.  As  the  porter  was  about  to  take  the 
pouch  from  her  hands  Miss  Preston's  eyes  fell 
upon  the  letter,  and,  supposing  it  to  be  one  which 
had  been  dropped  from  the  basket,  stooped  to 
pick  it  up.  She  was  a  quick-witted  woman,  and 
the  instant  she  saw  the  handwriting  and  the  ad- 
dress she  drew  her  own  conclusions. 

io—  taps  and  Capers.  j  H  » 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"So  that  is  part  of  the  life  problem,  is  it? 
Poor  little  girl,  she  has  got  to  learn  something 
which  the  average  girl  has  to  unlearn ;  where 
they  entirely  trust  their  fellow-beings,  she  en- 
tirely distrusts  them.  I  wonder  if  I  shall  ever 
be  able  to  show  her  the  middle  path  ?  "  Telling 
the  porter  to  wait  a  moment,  Miss  Preston  slipped 
into  the  library,  and,  catching  up  a  pencil  and 
slip  of  paper,  wrote  down  the  name  and  address 
which  was  written  upon  the  envelope,  then,  step- 
ping back  to  the  hall,  handed  the  porter  the 
letter  to  post. 

Toinette  joined  the  girls,  and  in  the  lively 
chatter  which  ensued  forgot  all  about  the  letter 
until  several  hours  later,  and  then  searched  for 
it  in  every  possible  and  impossible  place,  but,  of 
course,  without  finding  it,  and  was  in  a  very  un- 
comfortable  frame  of  mind  for  several  days,  and 
then  something  happened  which  did  not  serve  to 
reassure  her,  for  a  reply  came  to  her  from  her 
correspondent. 

How  in  the  world  her  letter  had  ever  reached 
158 


LETTERS 

him  was  the  question  which  puzzled  her  not  a 
little,  and  she  fretted  over  the  thing  till  she  was 
in  a  fever.  Then  she  determined  to  write  again 
to  ask  how  and  when  the  letter  had  reached  him, 
although  she  was  beginning  to  wish  that  boy, 
letter  and  all,  were  at  the  bottom  of  the  Red  Sea, 
so  much  had  they  tormented  her.  So  a  second 
letter  was  written,  and  then  came  the  puzzle  of 
getting  it  into  the  mailbag  unnoticed.  At  Miss 
Carter's  school  all  letters  had  been  examined 
before  they  were  allowed  to  be  mailed,  and  as 
Toinette's  correspondence  was  supposed  to  be 
limited  to  the  letters  she  wrote  to  her  father,  she 
had  never  inquired  whether  Miss  Preston  first 
examined  them  or  not,  but,  taking  it  for  granted 
that  she  did  so,  handed  them  to  her  unsealed. 
On  the  other  hand,  Miss  Preston,  thinking 
that  it  was  simply  carelessness  that  they  were 
not,  usually  sealed  them  and  sent  them  upon 
their  way. 

Although  she  had  not  said  anything  about  it, 
the  little  affair  had  by  no  means  passed  from 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Miss  Preston's  thoughts,  but  she  was  trying  to 
think  of  the  wisest  way  of  going  about  it,  and 
was  waiting  for  something  to  guide  her. 

"  If  I  can  only  win  her  confidence,"  she  said 
to  herself  more  than  once. 

160 


CHAPTER  XVII 
"  HAF   ANYBODY   SEEN    MY    UMBKEL  ?  " 

IT  was  the  last  week  in  February,  and  in  a 
few  days  the  school  dance  was  to  be  given. 
One  afternoon  a  dozen  or  more  girls  were 
gathered  in  Ethel's  room  to  see  her  dress  which 
had  been  sent  out  from  town.  It  was  as  dainty 
an  affair  as  one  could  wish  to  see,  and  many 
were  the  admiring  glances  cast  upon  it,  and  many 
the  praises  it  received.  Possibly  it  was  a  trifle 
elaborate  for  a  girl  of  fifteen,  for  it  was  made  of 
delicate  white  chiffon  over  pale  yellow  satin,  and 
exquisitely  embroidered  with  fine  silver  threads. 
But  Ethel  looked  very  lovely  in  it  as  she  preened 
herself  before  the  mirror,  and  was  fully  aware 
of  the  fact. 

"  What  are  you  going  to  wear,  Toinette?"  she 
asked. 

161 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  I  've  never  worn  anything  but  white  yet," 
answered  Toinette.  "At  Miss  Carter's  all  my 
dresses  were  ordered  by  Miss  Emeline,  and  she 
said  I  ought  not  to  wear  anything  else  till  I  was 
eighteen.  I  hope  Miss  Preston  won't  say  the 


same." 


"  I  should  think  you  would  have  hated  to  have 
the  teachers  say  just  what  you  must  wear,  as  well 
as  what  you  must  study.  Did  n't  your  father 
ever  send  you  any  clothes  ?  " 

"Papa  was  too  far  away  to  know  what  I  wore 
or  did,"  answered  Toinette,  rather  sadly. 

"Are  n't  you  glad  he  is  home  again  ?  "  asked 
quiet  little  Helen  Burgess,  who  somehow  always 
managed  to  say  soothing  things  when  one  felt 
sort  of  ruffled  up  without  knowing  just  why. 

"  You  had  better  believe  I  am ! "  was  the  em- 
phatic reply.  "  What  will  you  wear,  Helen  ?  " 

"The  same  thing  I  always  wear,  I  guess. 
I  have  n't  much  choice  in  the  matter,  you 
know." 

Toinette  colored  slightly  at  her  thoughtless 
162 


"HAF  ANYBODY  SEEN  MY  UMBREL?" 

remark,  for  she  had  not  paused  to  think  before 
speaking.  All  the  girls  knew  that  Helen's  purse 
was  a  very  slender  one,  and  that  it  was  only  by 
self-sacrifice  and  close  economy  that  her  parents 
were  able  to  keep  her  at  such  an  expensive  school. 
She  made  no  secret  of  her  lack  of  money,  but 
worked  away  bravely  and  cheerfully,  always 
sunny,  always  happy,  with  the  enviable  faculty 
of  invariably  saying  the  right  thing  at  the  right 
time.  She  had  pronounced  artistic  tendencies, 
and  Miss  Preston  was  anxious  to  encourage  them 
in  every  possible  way.  Her  great  desire  was 
to  go  to  Europe  and  there  see  the  originals  of 
the  famous  paintings  of  which  she  read.  Each 
year  Miss  Preston  went  abroad  and  took  with 
her  several  of  the  girls  whose  parents  could 
afford  such  indulgences  for  them,  and  Helen 
longed  to  be  one  of  them,  although  she  never  for 
a  moment  hoped  to  be. 

She  did  really  remarkable  work  for  a  girl  of 
her  age,  and  was  improving  all  the  time,  but  the 
trip  over  the  sea  seemed  as  far  off  as  a  trip  to 

163 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

the  moon.  Toinette  was  somewhat  of  a  dilettante, 
and  pottered  away  with  her  water-colors  with 
more  or  less  success.  But  she  admired  good 
work,  and  was  quick  to  see  that  Helen  was  a 
hard  student,  and  to  respect  her  for  it.  Al- 
though so  unlike  in  disposition,  as  well  as  posi- 
tion, a  warm  regard  had  sprung  up  between 
them,  and  Toinette  spent  many  hours  watching 
Helen  work  away  at  her  drawing.  The  girl's 
ambition  was  to  illustrate,  and  there  was  hardly 
a  girl  in  the  school  who  had  not  posed  for  her,  and 
the  drawings  in  her  sketch-book  were  excellent. 
Toinette  had  never  been  taught  to  think  much 
about  others,  and  so  it  is  not  surprising  that, 
while  she  admired  Helen,  and  wished  that  she 
could  have  those  things  she  so  longed  for,  it 
never  occurred  to  her  that  perhaps  there  were 
other  and  more  fortunate  girls  who  might  have 
helped  a  trifle  if  they  chose  to  do  so.  That 
she,  herself,  had  it  within  her  power  to  do  it 
never  entered  her  head  till  the  girls  began  to 
talk  about  their  new  dresses,  and  what  put  it 

164 


"HAF  ANYBODY  SEEN  MY  UMBREL?" 

there  then  would  be  hard  to  tell.  Nevertheless, 
come  it  did,  and  when  she  heard  Helen  speak  so 
composedly  of  wearing  to  the  school  dance,  Ike 
event  of  the  season,  in  their  eyes,  the  same  dress 
which  had  done  service  for  many  a  little  enter- 
tainment given  through  the  winter,  and  which 
gave  unmistakable  signs  of  having  done  so,  she 
realized  for  the  first  time  what  it  must  mean  to 
be  deprived  of  those  things  which  she  had  always 
accepted  as  a  matter  of  course. 

Still,  no  definite  plans  took  shape  in  her  head 
regarding  it,  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  none 
might  ever  have  done  so  had  not  something  oc- 
curred within  a  short  time  which  seemed  to  be 
the  hinge  upon  which  her  whole  after-life  swung. 

As  the  girls  were  in  the  midst  of  their  chatter 
about  the  new  gowns  a  tap  came  at  the  door,  and 
Fraulein  Palme  looked  in  to  ask  : 

"  Haf  anyone  seen  my  umbrel  ?  I  haf  hunt 
eferywhere  for  him,  and  can't  see  him  anywhere." 

"  No,  Fraulein,  we  have  n't  seen  it,"  answered 
several  voices. 

165 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Where  did  you  last  have  it?"  asked  Euth. 

"  Right  away  in  my  room  a  little  while  before 
I  am  ready  to  go  out.  I  go  down  to  the  post- 
office  and  must  get  wet  without  him." 

Two  or  three  of  the  girls  went  into  the  hall 
to  look  for  the  missing  umbrella,  and  others 
went  back  to  Fraulein's  room  with  her  to  make 
a  more  exhaustive  search.  But  without  success. 

"  Have  you  more  than  one  ?  "  asked  Edith. 

"  No,  it  is  but  one  I  haf  got.  It  is  very 
funnee,"  and  poor  Fraulein  looked  sorely  per- 
plexed. 

"  Take  mine,  Fraulein.  Yours  will  turn  up 
when  you  least  expect  it,"  said  Toinette. 

"What  did  it  look  like,  Fraulein?"  asked 
Cicely. 

"Chust  like  thees,"  was  the  astonishing  answer, 
as  absent-minded  Fraulein  held  forth  the  missing 
umbrella,  which  all  that  time  she  had  held  tightly 
clasped  in  her  hand,  and  which  had  been  the 
cause  of  Edith's  question  as  to  whether  she  had 
more  than  one,  for  she  supposed,  of  course,  that 

166 


"HAF  ANYBODY  SEEN  MY  UMBREL?" 

the  one  Fraulein  was  so  tightly  holding  must 
either  be  one  she  did  not  care  to  carry,  or  else 
one  she  was  about  to  return  to  someone  from 
whom  she  had  probably  borrowed  it. 

The  shout  which  was  raised  at  her  reply 
speedily  brought  poor  Fraulein  back  to  her 
senses,  and  murmuring : 

"  Ach,  so !  I  think  I  come  veruckt"  she  hur- 
ried off  down  the  hall  with  the  girls'  laughter 
still  ringing  in  her  ears. 

167 


CHAPTER  XVIII 
THE   LITTLE   HINGE 

THE  day  before  the  dance  was  to  be  given 
Toinette  wrote  her  second  letter,  arguing 
that  when  everybody  else  had  so  much 
to  occupy  their  thoughts  they  would  have  little 
time  to  notice  other  people's  doings,  and  the 
letter  could  be  mailed  without  exciting  com- 
ment. Waiting  until  the  very  last  moment,  she 
ran  down  to  the  mail-basket  to  slip  the  letter  in' 
it  unobserved.  As  ill-luck  would  have  it,  Miss 
Preston  also  had  a  letter  to  be  slipped  in  at  the 
last  moment,  and  she  and  Toinette  came  face  to 
face.  It  was  too  late  to  retreat,  for  the  letter 
was  in  her  hand  in  plain  view,  so,  forced  into 
an  awkward  position,  she  made  a  bad  matter 
worse.  Dropping  the  letter  quickly  into  the 

basket,  she  said : 

169 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Just  a  note  for  papa  about  something  I  want 
for  the  dance  to-inorrow,  Miss  Preston ;  I  did  n't 
think  you  'd  care,  and  I  had  n't  time  to  do  it 
earlier,"  and,  with  flaming  cheeks,  she  turned  to 
go  away. 

"Wait  just  one  moment,  dear,"  said  Miss 
Preston,  "  I  Ve  something  to  say  to  you.  Walk 
down  to  my  room  with  me,  please,"  and  she 
slipped  her  arm  about  the  girl's  waist. 

No  more  was  needed,  and  all  the  suspicion 
and  rebellion  in  Toinette's  nature  rose  up  to  do 
battle  with — windmills.  It  was  a  hard  young 
face  that  looked  defiantly  at  Miss  Preston. 

"  Toinette,  dear,  I  want  to  have  a  little  talk 
with  you,"  she  said,  as  she  locked  the  door  of 
her  sitting-room,  and,  seating  herself  upon  the 
divan,  drew  Toinette  down  beside  her. 

Toinette  never  changed  her  expression,  but 
looked  straight  before  her  with  a  most  uncom- 
promising stare. 

"  You  said  just  now  that  you  did  not  think  I 
170 


THE    LITTLE    HINGE 

would  care  if  you  sent  a  note  to  your  father ; 
why  should  I,  sweetheart  ?  " 

It  must  have  been  a  stubborn  heart,  indeed, 
which  could  resist  Miss  Preston's  sweet  tone. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know,  but  teachers  always  seem 
to  mind  every  little  thing  one  does,"  replied 
Toinette,  sulkily. 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  this  would  be  entirely 
too  'little  a  thing'  for  a  teacher  or  anyone  else 
to  mind.  Don't  you  think  so  yourself?  " 

"  Well,  of  course,  I  did  n't  think  you  would 
mind  simply  because  I  wrote  to  papa,  but  be- 
cause I  posted  the  letter  without  first  letting  you 
read  it,"  answered  Toinette. 

Now,  indeed,  was  Miss  Preston  learning  some- 
thing new,  and  not  even  a  child  could  have 
questioned  that  her  surprise  was  genuine  when 
she  exclaimed : 

"  Read  your  letters,  my  dear  little  girl !  What 
are  you  saying  ?  "  and  a  slight  flush  overspread 
her  refined  face. 

171 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

It  was  now  Toinette's  turn  to  be  surprised  as 
she  asked : 

"  Is  n't  that  the  rule  here,  Miss  Preston?" 

"Is  it  anywhere?  I  can  hardly  believe  it. 
One's  correspondence  is  a  very  sacred  thing, 
Toinette,  and  I  would  as  soon  be  guilty  of  listen- 
ing at  another  person's  door  as  of  reading  a  letter 
intended  for  another's  eyes.  Oh,  my  little  girl, 
what  mischief  has  been  at  work  here  ?  " 

While  Miss  Preston  was  speaking  Toinette 
had  risen  to  her  feet,  her  eyes  shining  like  stars, 
and  her  color  coming  and  going  rapidly.  Now, 
taking  both  Miss  Preston's  hands  in  her  own, 
she  said,  in  a  voice  which  quivered  with  excite- 
ment: 

"Is  that  truly  true,  Miss  Preston?  Aren't 
the  girls'  letters  ever  read?  Have  n't  mine  been? 
Do  you  trust  me  like  that?" 

Miss  Preston  looked  the  girl  fairly  in  the  eyes 
as  she  answered  : 

"  I  trust  you  as  I  trust  the  others,  because  I  feel 
you  to  be  a  gentlewoman,  and,  as  such,  you  would 

172 


THE    LITTLE    HINGE 

be  as  reluctant  to  do  anything  liable  to  cast  dis- 
credit upon  yourself  as  I  would  be  to  have  you. 
I  do  not  wish  my  girls  to  fear  but  to  love  me, 
with  all  their  hearts,  and  to  trust  me  as  I  trust 
them.  I  do  not  expect  you  to  be  perfect ;  we 
all  make  mistakes ;  I  make  many,  but  we  can 
help  each  other,  dear,  and  remember  this :  'Love 
casteth  out  fear.'  Try  to  love  me,  my  little  girl, 
and  to  feel  that  I  am  your  friend ;  I  want  so 
much  to  be." 

Miss  Preston's  voice  was  very  sweet  and  ap- 
pealing, and  as  she  spoke  Toinette's  eyes  grew 
limpid.  Miss  Preston  still  held  her  hands,  and, 
as  she  finished  speaking,  the  girl  dropped  upon 
her  knees  and  clasped  her  arms  about  her  waist, 
buried  her  face  in  her  lap  and  burst  into  a  storm 
of  sobs.  All  the  pent-up  feeling,  the  longing, 
the  struggle,  the  yearning  for  tenderness  of  the 
past  lonely  years  was  finding  an  outlet  in  the 
bitter,  bitter  sobs  which  shook  her  slight  frame. 

Although  Miss  Preston  knew  comparatively 
little  of  the  girl's  former  life,  she  had  learned 

ii — Cafa  and  Capers,  177 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

enough  from  Mr.  Reeve,  and  observed  enough 
in  the  girl  herself,  to  understand  that  this  out- 
burst was  not  wholly  the  result  of  what  had  just 
passed  between  them.  So,  gently  stroking  the 
pretty  golden  hair,  she  wisely  waited  for  the 
grief  to  spend  itself  before  she  resumed  her  talk, 
and,  when  the  poor  little  trembling  figure  was 
more  composed,  said : 

"  My  poor  little  Toinette,  let  us  begin  a  brand 
new  leaf  to-day — Hhee  and  me,'  as  the  Quakers 
so  prettily  put  it.  Let  us  try  to  believe  that 
even  though  I  have  spent  thirty  more  years  on 
this  big  world  than  you  have,  that  we  can  still 
be  good  friends,  and  sympathize  with  each  other 
either  in  sunshine  or  shadow.  To  do  this  two 
things  are  indispensible :  confidence  and  love. 
And  we  can  never  have  the  latter  without  first 
winning  the  former.  Remember  this,  dear,  I 
shall  never  doubt  you.  Whatever  happens,  you 
may  rest  firm  in  the  conviction  that  I  shall  al- 
ways accept  your  word  when  it  is  given.  Our 
self-respect  suffers  when  we  are  doubted,  and 


THE    LITTLE    HINGE 

one's  self-respect  is  a  very  precious  thing,  and 
not  to  be  lightly  tampered  with." 

She  now  drew  Toinette  back  to  the  couch  be- 
side her,  put  her  arm  about  her  waist,  and  let 
the  tired  head  rest  upon  her  shoulder.  The  girl 
had  ceased  to  sob,  but  looked  worn  and  weary. 
Miss  Preston  snuggled  her  close  and  waited  for 
her  to  speak,  feeling  sure  that  more  was  in  her 
heart,  and  that,  in  a  nature  such  as  she  felt 
Toinette's  to  be,  it  would  be  impossible  for  her 
to  rest  content  until  all  doubts,  all  self-reproach 
could  be  put  behind  her. 

She  sat  perfectly  still  for  a  long  time,  her 
hands  clasped  in  her  lap,  and  her  big,  brown 
eyes,  into  which  had  crept  a  wonderfully  soft 
expression,  looking  far  away  beyond  the  walls  of 
Miss  Preston's  sitting-room,  far  beyond  the  bed- 
room next  it,  and  off  to  some  lonely,  unsatisfied 
years,  when  she  had  lived  in  a  sort  of  truce  with 
all  about  her,  never  knowing  just  when  hostili- 
ties might  be  renewed.  It  had  acted  upon  the 

girl's  sensitive  nature  much  as  a  chestnut-prickle 

177 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

acts  upon  the  average  mortal ;  a  nasty,  little,  irri- 
tating thing,  hard  to  discover,  a  scrap  of  a  thing 
when  found — if,  indeed,  it  does  not  succeed  in 
eluding  one  altogether — and  so  insignificant  that 
one  wonders  how  it  could  cause  such  discomfort. 
But  it  is  those  miserable  little  chestnut-prickles 
that  are  hardest  to  bear  in  this  life,  and  so  warp 
one's  character  that  it  is  often  unfitted  to  bear 
the  heavier  burdens  which  must  come  into  all 

lives  sooner  or  later. 

178 


CHAPTER  XIX 
"FATAL  OR  FATED  ARE  MOMENTS" 

"  l^TOBODY  has  ever  spoken  to  me  as  you 
\  have,  Miss  Preston,"  Toinette  began 
presently,  "  and  I  can't  tell  you  how  I 
feel.  Maybe  heaven  will  be  better,  but  I  don't 
believe  I  shall  ever  feel  any  happier  than  I  feel 
this  minute.  It  seems  as  though  I  'd  been  living 
in  a  sort  of  prison,  all  shut  up  in  the  dark,  and 
that  now  I  am  out  in  the  sunshine  and  as  free  as 
the  birds.  But  I  must  tell  you  something  more:  I 
can't  rest  content  unless  I  do.  The  letter  I  posted 
to-day  was  n't  to  papa.  I  sent  it  to  Howard  Elting, 
in  Branton,  and  it  is  n't  the  first  I  Ve  written  him, 
either.  I  did  n't  lie  about  the  other  one,  Miss 
Preston ;  I  was  ready  to  mail  it,  but  lost  it ;  I 
don't  know  how.  Somebody  must  have  found  it 

179 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

and  posted  it,  for  lie  got  it  and  answered  it,  and 
I  was-  so  puzzled  over  it  that  I  wrote  again. 
That  was  the  letter  you  saw  me  post.  Now, 
that  is  the  truth,  and  I  know  that  you  believe 
me." 

Toinette  had  spoken  very  rapidly,  scarcely 
pausing  for  breath,  and  when  she  finished  gave 
a  relieved  little  sigh  and  looked  Miss  Preston 
squarely  in  the  eyes.  Truly,  her  self-respect 
was  regained. 

Will  some  of  my  readers  say :  "  What  a  tem- 
pest in  a  teapot  ?  "  To  many  this  may  seem  a 
very  trivial  affair,  but  how  small  a  thing  can  in- 
fluence our  lives  I  A  breath,  the  passing  of  a 
summer  shower,  may  help  or  hinder  plans  which 
alter  our  entire  lives.  And  Miss  Preston  was 
wise  enough  to  understand  it.  Here  was  a 
beautiful  soul  given  for  a  time  into  her  keeping. 
Now,  at  the  period  of  its  keenest  receptive  powers, 
a  delicate  and  sensitive  thing  needing  very  gentle 
handling. 

Stroking  the  head  again  resting  upon  her 
i  So 


FATAL  OR  FATED  ARE  MOMENTS 

shoulder,  as  though  it  had  found  a  safe  and  happy 
haven  after  having  been  tossed  about  upon  a 
troubled  sea,  she  said,  quietly : 

"  I  posted  the  letter,  dear ;  I  found  it  in  the 
hall  where  it  had  been  dropped ;  it  never  oc- 
curred to  me  that  there  was  any  cause  for  con- 
cealment; the  girls  all  correspond  with  their 
friends ;  it  is  an  understood  thing.  I  recognized 
your  writing,  and,  as  I  had  friends  at  Branton, 
I  wrote  to  ask  if  they  knew  the  person  written 
to.  They  replied  that  they  did,  and  told  me 
who  he  was.  Knowing  how  few  friends  you  have, 
I  wrote  to  this  boy  asking  him  to  come  to  our 
dance  to-morrow  night,  because  I  thought  the 
little  surprise  might  give  you  pleasure,  and  you 
would  be  glad  to  welcome  an  old  friend.  Does 
it  please  you,  my  little  girl  ?  " 

"  Oh,  Miss  Preston  ! "  was  all  Toinette  said, 
but  those  three  words  meant  a  great  deal. 

The  dressing-bell  now  rang,  and  Toinrtte 
sprang  up  with  rather  a  dismayed  look.  As 

though  she  interpreted  it,  Miss  Preston  said  : 

181 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  You  are  in  no  condition  to  meet  the  other 
girls  to-night,  dear.  They  cannot  understand 
your  feelings,  and,  without  meaning  to  be  un- 
kind or  curious,  would  ask  questions  which  it 
would  embarrass  you  to  answer.  You  are  ner- 
vous and  unstrung,  so  lie  down  on  my  couch  and 
I  will  see  that  your  dinner  is  brought  up.  I 
shall  say  to  the  other  girls  that  you  are  not  feel- 
ing well,  and  that  it  would  be  better  not  to  dis- 
turb you."  Then,  going  into  her  bedroom,  Miss 
Preston  quickly  made  her  own  toilet.  She  had 
just  finished  it  when  the  chimes  called  all  to  din- 
ner, and,  stooping  over  Toinette,  she  kissed  her 
softly  and  slipped  from  the  room. 

Some  very  serious  thoughts  passed  through 
Toinette's  head  during  the  ensuing  fifteen  min- 
utes, and  some  resolutions  were  formed  which 
were  held  to  as  long  as  she  lived. 

A  tap  at  the  door,  and  a  maid  entered  with  a 
dainty  dinner.  Placing  a  little  stand  close  to 
the  couch,  she  put  the  tray  upon  it,  and  then 

182 


FATAL    OR    FATED    ARE    MOMENTS 

asked  :  "  Can  I  do  anything  more  for  you,  Miss 
Toinette  ?  " 

"  No,  thank  you,  Helma.     This  is  very  tempt- 


ins:." 


When  Miss  Preston  came  to  her  room  an 
hour  later  she  found  the  tray  quite  empty,  and 
Toinette  fast  asleep.  Arranging  the  couch  pil- 
lows more  comfortably,  and  throwing  a  warm 
puff  over  the  sleeping  girl,  she  whispered,  softly: 
"  Poor  little  maid,  your  battle  with  Apollyon  was 
short  and  sharp,  but,  thank  God,  you  've  con- 
quered, even  at  the  expense  of  an  exhausted 
mind  and  weary  body." 

It  was  nearly  midnight  when  Toinette  opened 
her  eyes  to  see  Miss  Preston  warmly  wrapped 
in  her  dressing-gown,  and  seated  before  the  fire 
reading.  The  lamp  was  carefully  screened  from 
Toinette,  who  could  not  at  first  realize  what  had 
happened,  or  why  she  was  there,  but  Miss  Pres- 
ton's voice  recalled  her  to  herself. 

"Do  you  feel  rested,  dear?"  she  asked. 
"Don't  try  to  go  to  your  room;  just  undress 

183 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

and  cuddle  down  in  my  bed  with  me  to-night ; 
I  've  brought  in  your  night-dress." 

Toinette  did  not  answer,  but,  walking  over  to 
Miss  Preston,  just  rested  her  cheek  against  her's 
for  a  moment.  Twenty  minutes  later  she  was 
fast  asleep  in  her  good  friend's  bed. 

The  following  day  all  was  bustle  and  excite- 
ment at  Sunny  Bank,  for  great  preparations 
were  being  made  for  the  dance  in  the  evening, 
and  understanding  how  much  pleasure  it  gave 
the  girls  to  feel  that  they  were  of  some  assistance, 
she  let  them  fly  about  like  so  many  grigs,  help- 
ing or  hindering,  as  it  happened. 

They  brought  down  all  the  pretty  trifles  from 
their  rooms,  piled  up  sofa  pillows  till  the  couches 
resembled  a  Turk's  palace ;  arranged  the  flowers, 
and  rearranged  them,  till  poor  Miss  Preston  be- 
gan to  fear  that  there  would  be  nothing  left  of 
them.  However,  it  was  an  exceedingly  attrac- 
tive house  which  was  thrown  open  to  her  guests 
at  eight  o'clock  that  evening,  and  the  girls  had 
had  no  small  share  in  making  it  so. 

184 


FATAL    OR     FATED   ARE     MOMENTS 

A  very  complete  understanding  seemed  to 
exist  between  Toinette  and  Miss  Preston  now, 
for,  although  no  words  were  spoken,  none  were 
needed;  just  an  exchange  of  glances  told  that 
two  hearts  were  very  happy  that  night,  for 
love  and  confidence  had  come  to  dwell  within 
them. 

185 


CHAPTER  XX 
"NOW   TREAD   WE   A    MEASURE/ 

SHALL  we  ever  grow  too  old  to  recall  the 
pleasure   of   our   school   dances  ?     Then 
lights  seem  brighter,  toilets  more  ravish- 
ing, music  sweeter,  our  partners  more  fascinat- 
ing, and  the  supper  more  tempting  than  ever 
before  or  after. 

The  house  was  brilliantly  lighted  from  top  to 
bottom,  excepting  in  such  cosy  corners  as  were 
specially  conducive  to  confidential  chats,  and  in 
these  softly  shaded  lamps  cast  a  fairy-like  light. 
Miss  Preston,  dressed  in  black  velvet,  with 
some  rich  old  lace  to  enhance  its  charms,  re- 
ceived her  guests  in  the  great  hall,  some  of  the 
older  girls  receiving  with  her. 

There  were  ten  or  more  girls  who  were  taking 
187 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

special  courses,  and  these  were  styled  "  parlor 
boarders,"  and  at  the  end  of  the  school  term 
would  enter  society.  Consequently,  this  dance 
was  looked  upon  as  a  preliminary  step  for  the 
one  to  follow,  and  the  girls  regarded  it  as  a  sort 
of  "golden  mile-stone"  in  their  lives,  which 
marked  off  the  point  at  which  "  the  brook  and 
river  meet." 

A  prettier,  happier  lot  of  girls  could  hardly 
have  been  found,  and  none  looked  lovelier,  or 
happier,  than  Toinette.  Her  dress,  a  soft, 
creamy  white  chiffon,  admirably  suited  to  her 
golden  coloring,  had  been  sent  to  her  by  her 
father,  whose  taste  was  unerring.  No  matter 
how  many  miles  of  this  big  globe  divided  them, 
he  never  forgot  her  needs,  and,  if  unable  to  sup- 
ply them  himself,  took  good  care  that  some  one 
else  should  do  so.  So  the  dress  had  arrived  the 
night  before,  and  Miss  Preston  had  been  able 
to  give  her  another  pleasant  surprise  for  the 
dance.  And  now  she  looked  as  the  lilies  of  the 
field  for  fairness. 

1 88 


NOW    TREAD    WE    A    MEASURE 

She  was  whirling  away  upon  her  partner's 
arm,  when,  chancing  to  glance  toward  the  door? 
she  beheld  something  which  brought  her  to  an 
abrupt  stand-still,  much  to  her  partner's  amaze- 
ment. Miss  Preston  stood  in  the  doorway,  and, 
standing  beside  her,  with  one  hand  resting  lightly 
upon  his  hip  and  the  other  raised  a  little  above 
his  head,  and  resting  against  the  door-casing, 
stood  a  tall,  remarkably  handsome  man.  His 
attitude  was  unstudied,  but  brought  out  to  per- 
fection the  fine  lines  of  his  figure. 

Hastily  exclaiming :  "Oh,  please,  excuse  me, 
or  else  come  with  me,"  Toinette  glided  between 
the  whirling  figures,  and,  forgetful  of  all  else, 
cried  out  in  a  joyous  voice  :  "  Papa,  papa  Clay- 
ton, where  did  you  come  from  ?  " 

It  was  so  like  the  childish  voice  he  had  loved 
to  hear  so  long  ago,  that  he  started  with  pleasure. 

During  the  brief  holiday  Toinette  had  spent 
with  him  he  had  missed  the  spontaniety  he  had 
known  in  the  little  child,  and,  without  being 
able  to  analyze  it,  felt  that  something  was  waiit- 

189 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

ing  in  the  girl.  She  had  been  sweet  and  winning, 
yet  under  it  all  had  been  a  manner  quite  incom- 
prehensible to  him,  as  though  she  did  not  feel 
quite  sure  of  her  position  in  his  affections.  Her 
laugh  had  lacked  the  true  girlish  ring,  and 
her  conversation  with  him  seemed  guarded,  as 
though  she  had  never  quite  spoken  all  her 
thoughts. 

He  had  been  immeasurably  distressed  by  it, 
for  he  could  not  understand  the  cause,  and  bit- 
terly reproached  himself  for  not  being  better  ac- 
quainted with  his  own  child.  In  the  merry  girl 
who  now  stood  before  him,  her  eyes  shining,  her 
cheeks  flushed  with  excitement,  her  voice  so 
joyous,  he  saw  no  trace  of  the  listless  one  he  had 
placed  in  Miss  Preston's  charge  two  months  be- 
fore. 

Slipping  one  arm  about  her,  he  snuggled  her 
close  to  his  side,  as  he  answered : 

"A  blue-coated  biped  left  a  good,  substantial 
hint  at  my  office  not  long  since,  and  this  is  what 


came  of  following  it." 


190 


NOW    TREAD    WE    A    MEASURE 

"  You  did  it !  I  'in  sure  of  it,"  laughed  Toin- 
ette,  shaking  her  finger  at  Miss  Preston,  as  the 
latter  said :  "  I  leave  you  to  a  livelier  entertainer, 
now,  Mr.  Reeve,  while  I  go  to  look  after  some  of 
my  guests  who  may  not  be  so  fortunately  sit- 
uated," and  she  slipped  away,  Toinette  calling 
after  her :  "  You  are  responsible  for  most  of  the 
nice  things  which  happen  here.  Oh,  daddy," 
dropping  unconsciously  into  the  old  childish  pet 
name,  "I  've  such  stacks  of  things  to  tell  you. 
But,  excuse  me  just  one  second,  while  I  find  a 
partner  for  that  boy  I  've  left  stranded  high  and 
dry  over  there ;  does  n't  he  look  miserable  ? 
Then  I  '11  come  back,"  and,  kissing  her  hand 
gaily,  she  ran  off.  Returning  a  moment  or  two 
later,  she  said: 

"  There !  he  's  all  fixed,  and  is  sure  to  have  a 
good  time  with  Ethel  and  Lou ;  they  're  not  a 
team,  but  a  four-in-hand.  Now,  come  and  have 
a  dance  with  me,  and  then  we  '11  go  off  all  by 
ourselves  and  have  the  cosiest  time  you  ever 
dreamed  of.  I  feel  so  proud  to  have  you  all  to 

12— Cajs  and  Capers.  19 1 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

myself,"  she  added,  as  they  glided  away  to  the 
soft  strains  of  the  music,  "  so  sort  of  grown-up 
and  grand  with  such  a  handsome  partner." 

"  Hear !  hear !  Do  you  want  to  make  me 
vain  ?  I  have  n't  been  accustomed  to  hearing 
such  barefaced  compliments.  They  make  me 
blush." 

"I  really  believe  they  do"  answered  Toinette, 
throwing  back  her  head  to  get  a  better  look  at 
him,  and  laughing  softly  when  she  saw  a  slight 
flush  upon  his  face.  "  Never  mind,  it  is  all  in 
the  family,  you  know." 

"  Perhaps  I  have  other  reasons  for  feeling  a 
trifle  elated,"  he  said,  as  the  dance  came  to  an 
end  and  he  followed  Toinette  to  one  of  the  cozy 
corners.  Springing  up  among  the  cushions,  she 
patted  them  invitingly,  and  said : 

"  Come,  sit  down  here  beside  me,  and  let  me 
tell  you  all  about  the  loveliest  time  of  my  life. 
Oh,  daddy,  I  do  so  love  to  be  here,  and  you  don't 
know  how  good  Miss  Preston  is  to  me.  She  is 
good  to  us  all,  but,  somehow  the  other  girls  don't 

192 


"I   FEEL  SO   SORT  OF   GROWN    UP  AND  GRAND.' 
193 


"NOW    TREAD    WE    A    MEASURE" 

seem  to  need  so  much  setting  straight  as  /  have. 
I  think  I  must  have  been  all  kinked  up  in  little 
hard  knots  before  I  came  here,  and  Miss  Preston 
has  begun  to  untie  them.  She  has  n't  got  all 
untied  yet,  but  I  feel  so  sort  of  loosened  up  and 
easy  that  everything  seems  lots  more  comfort- 
able." 

Clayton  Reeve  did  not  smile  at  Toinette's  odd 
way  of  explaining  her  feelings.  He  knew  it  to  be 
a  fourteen-year-old  girl  who  spoke,  and  that  her 
thoughts,  to  be  natural,  must  be  put  into  her  own 
words. 

On  she  rambled,  telling  one  thing  after  an- 
other, and,  while  they  were  talking,  Helen 
Burgess  stopped  near  their  snuggery.  It  was 
too  dimly  lighted  for  her  to  discover  them,  and 
the  next  thing  they  knew  they  were  unwitting 
eavesdroppers,  for  Helen  was  talking  very  earn- 
estly to  one  of  her  boon  companions,  a  day-pupil 
at  the  school,  and  one  of  the  brightest  in  it,  but, 
like  Helen,  not  embarrassed  with  riches.  For 
some  time  the  girls  had  been  saving  their  small 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

allowances  toward  the  purchase  of  cameras,  but 
so  slowly  did  the  sums  accumulate  that  it  was 
rather  discouraging  for  them.  They  were  now 
talking  about  their  respective  ways  of  procuring 
the  sums  of  money  needed,  and  the  trifle  they 
had  managed  to  save,  and  the  small  amounts 
they  earned  in  one  way  or  another,  to  augment 
the  original  sums,  seemed  so  paltry  to  Toinette, 
who  never  stopped  to  ask  whence  came  the  five- 
dollar  bills  so  regularly  sent  her  each  week,  and 
who,  had  a  fancy  entered  her  head  for  one, 
would  have  walked  out  and  bought  a  camera 
very  much  as  she  would  have  bought  a  paper  of 

pins. 

196 


CHAPTER  XXI 
CONSPIRATORS 

ME.  EEEVE  would  have  risen  from  his 
snug  corner  and  discovered  himself  to 
the  girls,  but  Toinette  laid  her  finger 
upon  her  lips  to  enjoin  silence,  and,  although 
he  could  not  quite  understand  her  desire  to  play 
eavesdropper,  he  complied.  From  the  subject  of 
the  cameras  the  girls  went  on  to  Helen's  work 
in  the  art  class,  for  Jean  was  much  interested  in 
that  also,  and  they  often  built  air-castles  about 
the  wonderful  things  they  would  do  when  that 
fabulous  "stone  ship"  should  sail  safely  into 
port.  They  talked  earnestly  for  girls  of  thirteen 
and  fifteen,  and  Mr.  Reeve  could  not  fail  to  be 
impressed  by  the  strength  of  purpose  they  seemed 
to  possess,  and,  having  a  good  bit  of  stick-to- 

197 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

ativeness  himself,  admired  it  in  others.  More- 
over, he  had  been  forced  to  make  his  own  way 
in  life  when  young,  and  could  sympathize  with 
other  aspiring  souls. 

Presently  the  two  girls  moved  away,  and  then 
Toinette  whispered :  "  I  don't  know  what  you 
think  of  me  for  making  you  play  '  Paul  Pry/ 
but  I  had  a  reason  for  it,  and  now  I  '11  tell  you 
what  it  was." 

"  I  inferred  as  much,  so  kept  mum." 
"  Well,  you  see,  since  I  've  been  here  I  Ve 
waked  up  a  little,  and,  somehow,  have  begun  to 
think  about  other  people,  and  wonder  if  they 
were  happy.  At  Miss  Carter's  school  every- 
body just  seemed  to  think  about  themselves,  or,  if 
they  thought  of  anybody  else,  it  was  generally 
to  wonder  how  they  could  get  ahead  of  them 
in  some  way.  But  here  it  is  all  so  different, 
and  everybody  seems  to  try  to  find  out  what 
they  can  do  to  make  someone  else  happy.  I 
can't  begin  to  tell  you  how  it  is  done,  because  I 
don't  know  myself ;  only  it  is,  and  it  makes  you 

198 


CONSPIRATORS 

feel  sort  of  happy  all  over,"  said  Toinette,  trying 
to  put  into  words  that  subtle  something  which 
makes  us  feel  at  peace  with  all  mankind,  and 
little  realizing  that  its  cause  lay  right  within  her- 
self; for  a  sense  of  having  done  one's  very  best 
and  a  clear  conscience  are  wonderful  rosy  spec- 
tacles through  which  to  see  life. 

"  Go  on,  I  'm  keenly  interested,  and  these 
little  confidences  are  very  delightful,"  said  her 
father,  with  an  encouraging  nod  and  smile. 

"  So  I  began  to  want  to  do  little  things,  too, 
and,  do  you  know,  daddy,  you  'd  be  really  sur- 
prised if  you  knew  what  a  lot  of  ways  there  are 
of  making  the  girls  happy  if  you  only  take  the 
trouble  to  look  for  them.  For  instance,  there  is 
Helen  Burgess,  the  larger  of  the  girls  you  saw 
just  now:  we  have  become  real  good  friends,  and 
she  is  very  clever,  and  draws  beautifully.  But 
she  has  so  little  to  do  with  that  she  can't  afford 
to  get  the  things  the  other  girls  have  to  work 
with,  nor  have  the  advantages  they  have.  She 
and  Jean  have  been  trying  ever  so  long  to  get 

199 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

cameras,  for  they  think  that  they  could  take 
pretty  views  of  Montcliff  and  sell  them  to  the 
people  who  come  here  in  the  summer,  and  I  'm 
sure  they  could,  too.  It  does  not  make  so  much 
difference  to  Jean,  for,  although  she  is  n't  rich, 
she  is  n't  exactly  poor,  either,  you  know,  and 
has  a  good  many  nice  things,  but  Helen  never 
seems  to  have  any.  So  I  thought  I  'd  have  a 
little  talk  with  you  and  get  you  to  send  out  a 
cute  little  camera  for  each  of  them  and  never 
let  them  know  where  they  came  from.  Would  n't 
that  be  great  fun  ?  But  I  want  to  pay  for  them. 
You  can  use  ten  dollars  of  my  money,  and  not 
send  me  my  allowance  for  two  weeks ;  I  Jve  got 
enough  to  last." 

"And  what  will  my  poverty-stricken  lassie  do 
meantime  ?  "  asked  Mr.  Reeve. 

"Oh,  she  is  not  so  poverty-stricken  as  you 
think," laughed  Toinette.  "She won't  suffer.  And 
then  I  wanted  to  ask  you  if  there  was  n't  some 
way  of  helping  Helen  in  her  art  work.  She 
wants  so  much  to  go  abroad  with  Miss  Preston,  but 

200 


CONSPIRATORS 

lias  no  more  idea  of  ever  being  able  to  do  so  than 
she  has  of  going  to  the  moon.  What  would  it 
cost,  papa  ?  Is  n't  there  some  way  of  bringing 
it  about  ?  Could  n't  you  have  a  talk  with  Miss 
Preston  and  find  out  all  about  it,  and  then  we 
could  plan  something,  maybe." 

Toinette  had  become  very  earnest  as  she  talked, 
and  was  now  leaning  toward  her  father,  her 
hands  clasped  in  her  lap,  and  her  expressive  face 
alive  with  enthusiasm. 

Mr.  Reeve  hated  to  spoil  the  pretty  picture, 
but  said,  in  the  interested  tone  so  comforting 
when  used  by  older  people  in  speaking  to  young 
folk :  "  I  am  sure  we  can  evolve  some  plan.  I 
shall  be  very  glad  to  speak  to  Miss  Preston  be- 
fore I  return  to  the  city,  and  have  n't  the 
slightest  doubt  that  great  things  will  come  of 
it." 

"How  lovely!  You  're  just  a  darling !  I  'm 
going  to  hug  you  right  here  behind  the  cur- 
tains ! "  cried  Toinette,  as  she  sprung  up  and 
clasped  her  arms  about  his  neck. 

2OI 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Have  n't  you  one  or  two  more  favors  you  'd 
like  to  ask?"  said  Mr.  Reeve,  suggestively. 

"No,  not  another  one,  just  now,"  she  answered, 
laughing  softly.  Too  many  might  turn  your 
head,  and  mine,  too.  But  it  is  so  good  to  have 
you  home  once  more.  You  don't  know  how 
lonely  I  've  been  without  you,  daddy.  There 
was  n't  anyone  in  the  world  who  cared  two  straws 
for  me  till  you  came  back  and  I  came  here. 
But  I  've  got  you  now,  and  I  'm  not  going  to  let 
you  go  very  soon  again,  I  can  tell  you.  You  are 
too  precious,  and  we  are  going  to  have  lovely 
times  together  by-and-by  when  I  grow  up,  are  n't 
we?" 

"  We  are  not  going  to  wait  till  then,  sweet- 
heart ;  we  are  going  to  begin  right  off,  this  very 
minute.  I  can't  afford  to  waste  any  more  pre- 
cious time ;  too  much  has  been  wasted  already," 
he  said,  as  he  raised  the  pretty  face  and  kissed 
it,  and  then,  drawing  her  arm  through  his, 
added:  "Now  let  me  do  the  honors.  Introduce 
me  to  your  friends,  and  let  me  see  if  seven  years* 

202 


CONSPIRATORS 

knocking  about  this  old  world  has  made  me  for- 
get the  '  Quips,  and  Cranks,  and  Wanton  Wiles, 
Nods,  and  Becks,  and  Wreathed  Smiles'  I  used  to 
know." 

They  left  the  snuggery,  and,  blissfully  con- 
scious of  her  honors,  Toinette  presented  her 
father  to  the  girls.  Just  how  proud  they  were 
of  the  marked  attention  he  showed  to  each  I  '11 
leave  it  to  some  other  girls  to  guess.  He  danced 
with  them,  took  them  to  supper,  sought  out 
the  greatest  delicacies  for  them,  and  played 
the  gallant  as  though  he  were  but  twenty  in- 
stead of  forty-two.  " He  treated  us  just  as  though 
we  were  the  big  girls,"  they  said,  when  holding 
forth  upon  the  subject  the  next  day. 

Twelve  o'clock  came  all  too  soon. 

Mr.  Reeve  remained  over  night,  and  the  fol- 
lowing day  found  an  opportunity  to  have  a  long 
talk  with  Miss  Preston — a  talk  which  afforded 
him  great  satisfaction  for  many  reasons. 

Toinette,  with  several  of  the  other  girls,  es- 
203 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

corted  him  to  the  train,  and  gave  him  a  most 
enthusiastic  ' '  sen  d-off. " 

In  the  course  of  a  few  days  a  package  was  de- 
livered at  the  school.  Had  bomb-shells  been 
dropped  there  they  could  hardly  have  created 
more  excitement.  Jean's  house  was  only  a  few 
blocks  from  the  school,  and  one  Saturday  morn- 
ing— for  the  cameras  were  obliging  enough  to 
choose  that  day  to  appear — Mrs.  Rockwood's 
sitting-room  was  the  scene  of  the  wildest  ex- 
citement. 

204 


CHAPTER   XXII 

"  WE  VE  GOT  'EM  !     WE  VE  GOT  'EM  !    WE  'VE 
GOT  'EM  ! " 

MRS.  ROCKWOOD  was  in  her  sitting- 
room  one  morning.  It  was  Saturday, 
and  a  day  of  liberty  for  Jean.  She 
had  gone  over  to  the  school  to  spend  a  few  hours 
with  Helen,  and  Mrs.  Lockwood  did  not  ex- 
pect her  home  until  lunch-time,  but,  happening 
to  glance  from  her  window  about  ten  o'clock, 
what  was  her  surprise  to  see  two  figures  approach- 
ing, one  with  a  series  of  bounds,  prances  and 
jumps,  which  indicated  a  wildly  hilarious  and 
satisfied  frame  of  mind  in  Jean,  and  the  other 
with  a  subdued  hop  and  skip,  and  then  a  sedate 
walk,  which,  although  less  demonstrative,  was 
quite  as  indicative  of  a  very  deep  and  serene 
happiness  to  any  one  familiar  with  Helen. 

205 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

A  moment  later  the  front  door  slammed,  and 
two  pairs  of  feet  came  tearing  up  the  stairs  as 
though  pursued  by  Boer  cavalry,  and  two  eager 
voices  cried : 

"  We  've  got  'em!  We  've  got  'em !  We  've 
got  'em ! "  and  both  girls  came  tearing  into  the 
room  to  cast  themselves  and  two  very  suggestive 
looking  parcels  upon  Mrs.  Rockwood. 

"  What  in  this  world  has  happened  ? "  she 
asked,  in  amazement,  for  both  girls  were  breath- 
less, and  could  only  point  at  the  parcels  in 
her  lap  and  say:  "Open  them!  Open  them, 
quick!" 

Mrs.  Rockwood  was  a  woman  who  entered 
heart  and  soul  into  her  daughter's  pleasures, 
and  nothing  was  ever  quite  right  in  Jean's  eyes 
unless  her  mother  shared  it.  Every  little  plan 
must  be  talked  over  with  her,  and  it  was  pretty 
sure  not  to  suffer  any  from  one  of  her  sugges- 
tions. Helen  spent  a  great  deal  of  time  with 
Jean  and  was  devoted  to  Mrs.  Rockwood.  Con- 
sequently, when  the  cameras  arrived  at  the  school 

206 


WE  '  VE    GOT    'EM! 

that  morning,  and  they  found  out  that  there  was 
really  no  mistake,  but  that  they  were  certainly 
intended  for  the  persons  whose  names  were  so 
plainly  written  upon  the  boxes,  and  sent  in  Miss 
Preston's  care,  they  could  hardly  wait  to  get  over 
to  Jean's  house  to  show  their  treasures  to  her 
mother.  Many  had  been  the  surmises  as  to 
whom  had  sent  such  beauties,  but  Toinette  kept 
a  perfectly  sober  face,  and  no  one  suspected  the 
secret. 

Carefully  removing  the  wrappings,  Mrs.  Hock- 
wood  brought  the  contents  of  the  boxes  to  view. 
She  was  as  much  surprised  as  the  girls,  and  ex- 
claimed :  "  Why,  who  could  have  sent  them  to 
you,  and  how  did  anyone  learn  that  you  were  so 
anxious  to  have  them  ?  Such  beauties,  too ! " 

"  That  is  the  funniest  pa.rt  of  it  all,  for  we 
never  told  a  soul,  and  did  n't  mean  to  till  we  had 
them,  and  now  here  they  are.  I  believe  St. 
Nick  must  have  heard  us  wishing  for  them,"  said 
Helen. 

"And  to  both  of  us,  and  just  alike!  Think  of 
207 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

it !  Oh,  moddie,  is  n't  it  lovely  ? "  and  Jean 
threw  her  arms  about  her  mother's  neck  by  way 
of  giving  vent  to  her  feelings. 

"  I  'm  as  delighted  as  you  and  Helen  are, 
dear,  only  I  wish  we  might  learn  who  our  bene- 
factor is." 

"  Yes,  is  n't  it  too  bad.  Well,  it  may  crop  out 
later.  I  thought  first  it  must  be  Miss  Preston, 
but  she  said  that  she  did  not  know  any  more 
about  it  than  we  did,"  said  Helen. 

"  Now,  when  may  we  take  our  pictures,  and 
what  shall  we  take  ?  "  cried  Jean. 

"  You  suggest  something,  Mrs.  Kockwood ;  it 
will  be  nicer  if  you  do  it,"  said  Helen,  dropping 
down  upon  her  knees  beside  Mrs.  Kockwood, 
and  placing  her  arm  around  her  friend's  waist. 

Mrs.  Kockwood  drew  her  close  to  her  side  as 
she  replied : 

"  Let  me  examine  these  treasures  which  have 
arrived  so  mysteriously,  read  the  directions  con- 
cerning them,  and  then  we  '11  see  what  we  '11 
see,"  and  she  began  to  read :  "  Take  the  camera 

208 


'  WE  '  VE    GOT    'EM! 

into  a  perfectly  dark  closet,  where  no  ray  of 
light  can  penetrate  (even  covering  the  keyhole), 
and  then  place  within  it  one  of  the  sensitive 
plates,  being  careful  not  to  expose  the  unused 
plates.  Your  camera  is  now  ready  to  take  the 
picture,  etc."  "That  is  all  very  simple,  I  'm  sure, 
and  if  the  taking  proves  as  simple  as  are  the 
directions  you  need  have  little  apprehension  of 
failure.  But  your  directions  add  very  explicitly 
that  you  must  not  attempt  to  take  a  picture  un- 
less the  day  is  sunny.  So  I  fear  those  condi- 
tions preclude  the  possibility  of  your  taking  any 
upon  this  cloudy  day,  and  you  will  have  to  pos- 
sess your  souls  in  peace  till '  Old  Sol '  favors  you." 

"  Oh,  dear,  is  n't  that  too  bad !  I  thought  we 
could  take  some  right  off.  Don't  you  think  we 
might  at  least  try,  mamma  ?  " 

"  I  fear  they  would  prove  failures ;  better  wait 
a  more  favorable  light." 

As  though  to  tantalize  frail  humanity,  "  Old 
Sol"  remained  very  exclusive  all  day,  and,  even 
though  Helen  remained  till  evening  in  the  hope 

13—  Caps  and  Caper*, 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

that  lie  would  overcome  his  fit  of  sulks,  nothing 
of  the  kind  happened,  and  she  was  forced  to  go 
back  to  the  school  without  one. 

"Just  wait  till  Monday,  and  we  '11  do  wonders; 
see  if  we  don't,"  said  Jean,  as  she  bade  her  fare- 
well, little  dreaming  what  wonders  she  was  des- 
tined to  do  with  her  magical  box  ere  the  sun  set 
Monday  night. 

"I  '11  ask  Miss  Preston  to  let  me  come  over 
at  four  o'clock  on  Monday,  and  then  we  '11  go 
out  in  the  little  dell  and  get  a  lovely  picture. 
You  know  the  place  I  mean :  where  that  old 
clump  of  fir-trees  stands  by  the  ruined  wall,"  said 
artistic  Helen. 

But  when  Monday  arrived  unforseen  difficul- 
ties arose  for  Jean.  The  day  was  the  sunniest 
ever  known,  and,  while  waiting  for  Helen  to 
come,  she  got  out  the  precious  camera  to  set  the 
plates. 

"  Why,  mamma,  there  is  n't  a  dark  closet  in 
the  whole  house ;  not  a  single  one,"  cried  Jean, 
coming  into  her  mother's  room  as  she  was  dress- 

2IO 


WE  'VE    GOT    'EM! 

ing  to  go  out  on  Monday  afternoon.  "Now, 
where  in  this  world  am  I  to  open  my  plate-box, 
I'd  like  to  know?" 

Mrs.  Rockwood  laughed  as  she  turned  toward 
Jean,  whose  face  was  the  picture  of  dismay. 
"  True  enough,  there  is  n't.  Now,  who  would 
have  supposed  that  the  architect  who  designed 
this  house,  and  put  a  window  in  every  closet, 
could  have  been  so  short-sighted  as  not  to 
anticipate  such  a  need  as  the  present  one  ?  " 

"  But  what  am  I  to  do  ?  "  desperately. 

"  Try  putting  a  dark  covering  over  the  win- 
dows." 

"  I  have,  but  it  's  just  no  use,  for  I  can't  get  it 
pitch  dark  to  save  me." 

"And  to  think  that  barely  forty-eight  hours 
ago  I  was  congratulating  myself  that  every  closet 
in  the  house  could  be  properly  aired.  Alas! 
how  do  our  recent  acquisitions  alter  our  views  ?" 

"  Now,  moddie,  don't  laugh,  but  stop  teasing 
me,  and  just  think  as  hard  as  ever  you  can  how 
I  am  to  find  a  dark  place," 

211 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Mrs.  Rockwood  thought  for  a  few  moments, 
and  then  said  : 

"I  have  it!  Mary's  pot-closet,  under  the 
back  stairs ;  that  is  as  dark  as  a  pocket,  I  'in 


sure." 


"  There !  I  knew  you  'd  find  a  way ;  you  al- 
ways do.  Just  the  very  place,  and  now  I  'm 
going  straight  down  to  fix  it.  Good-bye,"  and, 
kissing  her  mother,  away  she  flew. 

212 


M 


CHAPTER  XXin 
A  CAMERA'S  CAPERS. 

"ABY!"  cried  Jean,  as  she  bounced  into 
the  kitchen,  where  the  maid,  a  typi- 
cal "  child  of  Erin,"  who  worshipped 
the  very  ground  Jean  trod  upon,  stood  at  the 
sink  paring  her  "  taties  "  for  the  evening  meal, 
"  see  my  new  camera ;  I  'm  going  to  take  a  pic- 
ture with  it,  and  I  Ve  got  to  go  into  your  pot- 
closet  to  fix  the  plates." 

"A  picter,  is  it?  And  will  ye  be  afther  takin' 
a  picter  wid  that  schmall  bit  av  a  black  box  ? 
How  do  ye  do  it  at  all,  I  do'  know." 

"  Oh,  I  go  into  a  dark  closet  and  put  a  gela- 
tine plate  in  the  box,  and  then  I  go  outdoors 
and  take  my  picture." 

"A  gilitin  plate,  is  it?     Thin,  faith,  ye  '11 
213 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

cake  ne'er  a  picter  this  day,  for  Oi  'm  jist  afther 
usin'  the  last  schrap  av  gilitin  in  the  house  to 
make  the  wine  jilly  fer  the  dinner." 

"  I  don't  mean  that  kind  of  gelatine ;  the  kind 
I  use  is  already  prepared  on  little  plates  in  this 
box,  and  I  have  to  go  in  the  dark  closet  to  fix 
them." 

"  Faith,  I  'd  fix  thim  out  here,  thin,  where  ye 
can  see  what  ye  're  about.  It 's  dungeon  dhark 
in  the  pot-closet." 

"  That  is  exactly  what  I  want,  and,  please, 
don't  come  near  it,  or  open  the  door  while  I  'm 
in  there,  will  you  ?  " 

"  No,  no;  I  '11  not  come  near  ye.  The  minute 
I  Ve  done  me  taties  it 's  down  in  the  laundry 
Oi  'm  goin',  an'  Oi  '11  not  bother  ye  at  all ;  but 
here,  take  this  schmall,  little  candle  wid  ye 
whan  ye  go  in,  fer  it  's  that  dhark  ye  '11  not  see 
yer  hand  forninst  ye,"  and  she  caught  up  a 
candle  from  the  shelf. 

"  No,  no  I  I  don't  want  any  light ;  the  darker 
it  is  the  better." 

214 


A    CAMERA'S    CAPERS 

"  It 's  crackin'  yer  head  aff  ye  '11  be." 

"  No,  I  sha'  n't,"  said  Jean,  as  she  whisked 
into  the  closet  and  drew  the  door  together  just 
as  Mary  started  down  the  back  stairs  to  the 
laundry. 

Had  the  closet  been  designed  for  an  eel-pot  it 
would  have  proved  the  most  complete  success, 
for  getting  into  it  was  a  very  simple  matter, 
whereas,  getting  out  required  considerable  ingen- 
uity. Absorbed  in  the  one  idea  of  getting  the 
plates  placed  in  the  camera,  Jean  entirely  for- 
got the  peculiarities  of  the  fastening  upon  the 
door.  As  she  slammed  it  together  every  ray  of 
light  vanished,  and  she  was  instantly  enveloped 
in  an  Egyptian  darkness.  Carefully  opening 
her  box,  she  drew  from  it  one  of  the  plates, 
touched  it  with  her  fingers  to  find  which  side 
was  coated  with  the  gelatine  preparation,  placed 
it  in  the  camera  and  turned  to  leave  the  closet. 

"  Now,  I  '11  have  a  picture  in  just  about  two 
jiffs,"  she  said,  and  pushed  against  the  door. 
To  her  surprise,  it  did  not  open.  Another 

215 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

push,  with  the  same  result.  It  then  dawned 
upon  her  that  the  spring-bolt  had  fastened  upon 
the  outer  side.  Feeling  carefully  about  in  the 
pitch  darkness,  she  laid  her  things  upon  the  shelf 
and  tried  to  find  a  way  of  getting  out.  But, 
push,  shake  and  rattle  as  she  might,  it  was  use- 
less ;  the  door  remained  tightly  fastened. 

"  Mary,"  she  called,  "  come  and  let  me  out, 
please." 

No  response. 

"  M-a-r-y !  I  *m  locked  in  ;  come  let  me  out ! " 

"What  in  the  whorld  is  the  matter  wid  ye?" 
came  from  the  foot  of  the  stairs. 

"  I  'm  locked  in  and  can't  get  out ;  come  and 
open  the  door ! " 

"Och,  worra!  Don't  be  callin'  to  me  not  to 
open  the  door ;  did  n't  Oi  tell  ye  Oi  would  n't 
come  near  ye,  and  Oi  won't.  It 's  goin'  down 
to  the  bharn  Oi  am,  and  ye  need  n't  be  for  wor- 
ritin',  at  all,  at  all,"  and  receding  footsteps  proved 
Mary's  words  only  too  true. 

"  Now,  I  'm  in  a  pretty  fix,  am  I  not  ?  Like 
216 


A    CAMERA'S    CAPERS 

enough  she  won't  come  back  for  twenty  minutes, 
and  here  I  've  got  to  stay.  Plague  take  the  old 
bolt!" 

What  imp  of  mischief  made  Mary  return  to 
the  laundry  by  the  cellar-door,  take  up  her 
basket  of  freshly  laundered  clothes,  and,  after 
carrying  them  up  to  Mrs.  Rockwood's  bedroom, 
go  on  to  her  own  in  the  third  story  to  dress  for 
the  afternoon,  must  forever  remain  a  mystery. 
But  this  she  did,  and,  as  Jean  heard  her  go  up 
the  back  stairs,  beneath  which  she  was  securely 
fastened  in  the  pot-closet,  she  thumped  and 
pounded  with  renewed  energy.  But  the  only 
response  was : 

"  No,  no  ;  not  for  the  whorld,  darlint,  would 
Oi  disthurbe  ye  and  spoil  yer  purty  picter." 

About  an  hour  later  Mrs.  Rockwood,  re- 
turning from  her  call,  met  Helen  upon  the  front 
piazza. 

"  Has  Jean  got  everything  ready  to  take  the 
pictures?"  she  asked,  eagerly.  "It  is  such  a 
perfect  day  for  it,  and  I  am  so  anxious  that  I 
217 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

can  hardly  wait.  It  seems  too  good  to  be  true 
that  we  have  really  got  cameras  at  last,  does  n't 
it?" 

"It  seems  as  though  the  fairies  must  have 
been  aware  of  your  great  desire  to  have  them, 
and  so  took  matters  into  their  own  hands,"  re- 
plied Mrs.  Rockwood,  as  she  unfastened  the 
front  door  with  her  latch-key  and  held  it  open 
for  Helen  to  enter. 

As  they  entered  the  hall  they  were  greeted 
with  a  series  of  muffled  thumps  and  bangs. 

"  I  do  wish  Mary  would  remember  what  I 
have  so  often  told  her  about  breaking  her  kind- 
ling upon  the  cellar  floor,"  she  exclaimed. 

Rattle,  rattle !  Bang,  bang !  and  then  a  crash 
as  though  the  roof  were  falling. 

"  What  under  the  sun  can  be  the  matter  I " 
exclaimed  Mrs.  Bockwood. 

Just  then  Mary  appeared  at  the  head  of  the 
stairs. 

"Why,  Mary,  what  is  all  this  noise  ?  " 

"Shure,  it  was  comin'  down  mesilf  Oi  was  to 
218 


A    CAMERA'S    CAPERS 

see.  Saints  presarve  us,  can  there  be  thieves 
in  the  house,  Oi  do'  know  ! " 

"  Rather  noisy  thieves,  I  should  think.  Where 
is  Miss  Jean  ?  " 

"  Out  in  the  fields  beyant,  wid  her  bit  av  a 
camela  takin'  her  picter,  Oi  'm  thinkin'.  'T  was 
there  she  said  she  'd  be  goin'  afther  she  came 
out  of  the  pot-closet — saints  have  mercy !  Could 
she  git  out  at  all,  at  all  ?  "  and  Mary  tore  down 
the  stairs,  with  Mrs.  Rockwood  and  Helen  close 
at  her  heels.  She  reached  the  closet,  flung  open 
the  door,  and  beheld  a  spectacle.  Seated  on  the 
floor,  in  the  midst  of  a  scattered  array  of  pots, 
kettles  and  frying-pans,  her  box  of  plates  upset, 
her  precious  camera  in  her  lap,  and  blissfully 
unconscious  that  the  slide  was  open,  sat  Jean, 
a  very  picture  of  despair. 

"  Mighty  man !  And  have  ye  been  in  here 
all  this  toim,  an'  not  to  be  smothered  dead ! " 
cried  Mary. 

"  How  could  I  be  anywhere  else,  I  'd  like  to 
know  ?  "  said  Jean,  indignantly.  "  I  called  and 

219 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

called,  but  I  could  n't  get  you  to  let  me  out,'* 
and,  bouncing  up,  she  scrabbled  the  plates  back 
into  their  box,  then  caught  up  the  camera  to 
see  if  all  was  as  it  should  be  with  that.  As  she 
jumped  up  the  slide  closed,  and,  quite  unaware 
that  it  had  ever  been  open,  she  announced  to 
her  nearly  convulsed  audience  : 

"  Well,  I  'm  out  at  last,  and  now  I  hope  I  can 
take  a  picture ;  come  on,  Helen,"  little  dreaming 
that  the  treacherous  sunlight,  which  flashed 
through  the  hall  window  and  straight  into  the 
pot-closet,  had  already  printed  a  most  perfect 
one  on  the  plate. 

A  few  moments  later  both  she  and  Helen 
were  out  in  the  fields  back  of  the  house,  and 
had  snapped  charming  little  scenes. 

Bemoaning  her  unintentional  trick,  Mary 
went  back  to  her  work,  while  Mrs.  Rock  wood 
went  up  to  her  room  to  laugh  heartily  over  the 
mishap,  never  suspecting  that  the  funniest  part 
would  appear  in  the  sequel. 

A  half  hour  later  the  girls  came  flying  into 
her  room  to  say,  excitedly: 

220 


"AN1    HAVE  YE  BEEN   IN   THERE  ALL  THIS   TIME?" 
221 


A    CAMERA'S    CAPERS 

"  We  've  taken  them  !     "We  Ve  taken  them  ! " 

"And  I  know  they  will  be  just  lovely,  for  the 
sun  shone  right  on  the  trees  and  the  ruins. 
How  I  wish  we  could  develop  them ;  don't  you, 
Helen?" 

"  Yes,  I  'd  like  to  know  how,  and,  now  that  I 
have  the  camera,  I  shall  get  a  developing  outfit 
and  learn ;  but  let 's  take  these  right  over  to 
Charlton's  and  have  him  develop  them  for  us." 

They  started  for  the  village  to  leave  the  plates 
to  be  developed,  and  waited  with  what  patience 
they  could  for  the  following  day,  when  the  pho- 
tographer promised  to  send  them  the  proofs. 

They  came,  and  one  at  least  was  truly  a 
marvel. 

In  the  foreground  of  Jean's  was  a  pretty 
clump  of  fir-trees  growing  beside  an  old  ruined 
stone  wall,  under  which  nestled  a  bunch  of  dry 
golden  rod.  But  the  background !  Did  ever 
the  maddest  artist's  brain  conceive  of  such  ? 
Clear  and  distinct,  where  sky  should  have  been, 
stood — a  frying-pan ! 

223 


CHAPTER  XXIV 
WHISPERS 

"ARCH,  with  its  winds  and  storms,  slipped 
away  as  though  glad  to  whisk  such 
trying  days  off  the  calendar,  and,  ere 
the  girls  realized  it,  Easter  vacation  was  upon 
them,  and  capricious  April  was  playing  the 
schoolgirl  herself,  with  one  day  a  smile  and  the 
next  a  frown.  But,  like  the  schoolgirl,  her 
smiles  were  all  the  sunnier  for  the  frowns. 

It  must  indeed  be  a  dull,  prosy  old  heart 
which  cannot  respond  to  the  soft  beauty  of  early 
spring,  and  want  to  frisk  and  frolic  for  very 
sympathy  with  all  the  new  life  springing  into 
existence  all  about  it.  And  there  were  no  dull 
or  prosy  ones  at  Sunny  Bank. 

For  some  time  the  girls  had  known  that  this 
225 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

would  be  Miss  Howard's  last  year  with  them ; 
but  now  little  whispers  began  to  fly  about,  as 
little  whispers  have  a  trick  of  doing,  that  Miss 
Howard  was  about  to  enter  another  school,  where 
she  would  be  pupil  instead  of  teacher,  and  there 
learn  the  sweetest  lesson  ever  taught  on  this  big 
earth — a  lesson  which  says,  "  Not  mine  and 
thine,  but  ours,  for  ours  is  mine  and  thine;"  and, 
while  they  rejoiced  in  her  happiness,  they  were 
nearly  inconsolable  at  the  thought  of  losing  her, 
for  she  had  filled  a  very  beautiful  place  in  their 
lives — far  more  beautiful  than  they  suspected. 
It  was  always  Miss  Howard  who  entered  into 
all  their  little  plans  and  pleasures,  participated 
in  their  joys,  and  sympathized  with  their  sor- 
rows. 

She  was  little  more  than  a  girl  herself,  yet 
possessed  the  strength  of  character  sometimes 
wanting  in  a  much  older  person,  and  by  it  set 
a  beautiful  example  for  her  girls  to  follow. 
And  they  followed  it  unconsciously  to  themselves 
and  to  her,  for  never  was  there  a  more  modest 

226 


WHISPERS 

little  body  than  Miss  Howard,  and  had  anyone 
hinted  that  she  was  a  mighty  balance-wheel  to 
her  fly-away  girls,  a  source  of  encouragement  to 
her  timid  ones,  an  inspiration  to  her  ambitious 
ones,  and  an  object  of  very  sincere  affection  to 
all,  she  would  probably  have  been  the  most  sur- 
prised person  in  the  school.  Yet  such  was  un- 
doubtedly the  fact,  and  it  would  have  been  a  very 
wrong-headed  girl,  indeed,  who  was  not  ready 
to  yield  to  her  influence. 

"  If  I  felt  criss-cross  with  all  the  world,  I  be- 
lieve I  'd  have  to  smile  back  when  Miss  Howard 
smiled  at  me,"  said  Toinette,  shortly  after  she 
became  a  pupil  in  the  school.  "  Her  eyes  are 
just  as  soft  as  the  little  Alderney  bossie's,  and 
her  lips  look  sort  of  grieved  if  the  girls  look 


cross." 


And  so  the  whispers  grew  louder  and  louder 
till  just  after  the  Easter  holidays  were  over,  and 
then  all  who  loved  her  best  learned  that  early 
in  June  wedding  bells  would  ring  and  a  very 
bonny  bride  would  step  forth  from  Sunny  Bank, 

1 4—  Caps  and  Capers.  g  2  7 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

with  several  bonny  bridesmaids  leading  the  way, 
and  one  maid  of  honor  to  scatter  the  posies  which 
were  to  be  symbolical,  as  all  hoped,  of  her  future 
pathway  through  life. 

And  then  arose  the  all-important  question  as 
to  whom  Miss  Howard  would  choose  for  that 
great  honor,  and  excitement  ran  high. 

All  the  girls  had  a  strong  suspicion  that  it 
would  be  Toinette,  although,  to  do  her  justice, 
Toinette  herself  did  not  suspect  it.  Still,  Miss 
Howard  had  taken  a  keen  interest  in  the  girl 
ever  since  she  entered  the  school,  and  felt 
strongly  drawn  toward  her,  being  quick  to  see 
her  good  qualities,  and  to  understand  that  the 
undesirable  ones  were  very  largely  the  result  of 
unfortunate  circumstances.  So  she  had  striven 
in  her  sweet  and  gracious  way  to  help  Toinette 
without  words,  and  had  been  a  strong  support  to 
Miss  Preston. 

As  the  warm  spring  days  made  wood  and  field 
to  blossom,  the  girls  spent  a  great  deal  of  their 
time  out  of  doors.  Sunny  Bank's  grounds  were 

228 


WHISPERS 

very  beautiful,  and  the  adjacent  field  and  wood- 
land very  enticing  at  that  season.  Basket-ball 
was  a  favorite  source  of  amusement,  and  the  lawn 
devoted  to  it  as  soft  and  smooth  as  velvet.  So 
nearly  every  afternoon  the  team  could  be  seen 
bounding  about  like  so  many  marionettes,  and  if 
touseled  hair  and  demoralized  attire  resulted, 
what  did  it  matter  ?  Kosy  cheeks  and  ravenous 
appetites  were  excellent  compensations. 

It  was  the  fifteenth  of  April,  and  Toinette's 
birthday.  Many  a  climb  had  the  expressman's 
horse  taken  up  the  long  hill  leading  to  Sunny 
Bank  that  morning,  for,  if  Toinette  had  but  few 
friends,  she  certainly  had  a  very  generous  father, 
who  meant  that  she  should  have  her  full  share 
of  birthday  remembrances,  and  they  kept  coming 
thick  and  fast  all  day.  With  each  came  a  funny 
note  to  say  that  he  was  sending  still  another 
package  because  he  did  not  want  her  to  have  all 
her  surprises  in  a  lump ;  they  would  seem  so 
much  more  if  coming  in  installments.  So  they 
kept  coming  all  day  long,  and  by  four  o'clock 

229 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

her  room  looked  like  a  fancy  bazaar.  Last  of  all 
to  arrive  was  a  large  box  upon  which  was  printed 
in  flaring  scarlet  letters :  "  Not  to  be  opened  till 
it  is  ten  A.  M.  in  Bombay!' 

The  box  stood  in  the  hall  when  Miss  Preston 
passed  through  the  hall  to  dinner,  and,  unless 
suddenly  stricken  with  ophthalmy,  she  could  not 
fail  to  see  the  flaring  notice.  "Ah,"  she  said, 
softly,  to  herself,  "you  have  a  triple  mission, 
you  inanimate  bit  of  the  carpenter's  skill :  first, 
to  teach  my  girls  a  lesson  in  longitude  and  time; 
second,  to  mutely  ask  my  permission  for  a  frolic 
to-night,  and,  third,  to  suggest  that  when  birth- 
days arrive  it  would  be  a  most  auspicious  time 
for  the  "  C.  C.  C.'s "  to  hold  their  revels,  and 
that  Diogenes'  tub,  if  not  himself,  would  be  wel- 
come, so  I  had  better  act  upon  the  hint  and  con- 
tribute my  share.  Thank  you,  sir,"  and,  with  a 
funny  little  nod  to  the  box,  she  went  on  to  the 
dining-room. 

"What  is  the  joke,  Miss  Preston?"  asked 
Cicely,  as  Miss  Preston  took  her  seat. 

230 


WHISPERS 

"  Do  you  think  I  'm  going  to  spoil  it  by  re- 
vealing it  so  soon?  No,  indeed,"  and  she 
laughed  softly. 

When  dinner  was  ended  the  girls  flocked 
around  the  box  and  curiosity  ran  riot.  "What 
does  that  mean,  Miss  Preston  ?  Do  tell  us." 

"  I  have  other  matters  of  such  importance  on 
hand  that  I  must  deputize  Miss  Howard  to  un- 
ravel the  mystery  for  you,"  she  said,  as  she 
slipped  away  to  the  upper  hall  where  the  tele- 
phone was  placed,  and  a  moment  later  the  girls 
heard  the  bell  jingle  and  a  funnys  one-sided  con- 
versation followed.  "  Hello,  Central !  1305.  Is 
this  1305?  Send  me  the  usual  order.  Yes, 
four  kinds.  Eight.  Well  packed0  Be  prompt." 

The  porter  carried  the  big  box  to  Toinette's 
room  and  removed  the  lid  for  her.  Such  an 
array  I  I  'm  not  going  to  attempt  to  tell  about 
it,  but  shall  let  every  girl  who  has  ever  attended 
a  chum's  birthday  feast  mention  the  articles  of 
which  th^t  feast  consisted,  and  then,  after  com- 

231 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

bining  the  entire  list,  they  can  form  some  idea 
of  the  contents  of  Toinette's  box. 

"  Fly,  Cicely,  and  hunt  up  every  C.  C.  C., 
and  a  dozen  besides !  We  can  never  dispose  of 
such  a  cartload  of  stuff  in  a  week  if  we  don't 
have  the  entire  school  to  help  us,"  cried  Toin- 
ette,  as  she  lifted  one  thing  after  another  from 
the  box. 

There  is  a  saying  that  "  111  news  flies  fast," 
but,  in  my  humble  opinion,  it  is  as  a  stage-coach 
beside  the  Empire  State  Express  when  compared 
to  the  fleetness  of  good  news.  So  it  did  not  take 
long  to  start  this  bit  like  an  electric  fluid 
through  the  school,  and  what  sort  of  "Free 
Masonry"  filled  in  details  so  successfully  I  know 
not. 

232 


CHAPTER  XXV 

"WHAT  AKE  YOU  DOING  UP  THIS  TIME  OF 
NIGHT  ?  " 

IT   so   happened    that   of    the    ten   resident 
teachers  but  three  were  at  home  that  even- 
ing; the   others   having  joined  a  theatre 
party  going  to  town,  and  it  would  be  midnight 
before  they  returned. 

Those  at  home  were  Miss  Preston,  Miss  How- 
ard, and,  unfortunately,  Mrs.  Stone.  Of  the  first 
two  mentioned  the  girls  felt  small  apprehension, 
for  they  understood  them  pretty  thoroughly,  but 
Mrs.  Stone  was  an  obstacle  not  so  easily  sur- 
mounted, and  it  seemed  to  them  that  she  was 
never  more  ubiquitous. 

At  nine-thirty  Miss  Preston  had  bade  all 
good-night  in  an  unusually  solicitous  manner, 

233 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

wishing  each  happy  dreams.  Miss  Howard  had 
also  retired  to  her  room  promptly  at  the  stroke 
of  the  clock,  and  everything  worked  most  au- 
spiciously excepting  the  tucking  away  of  Mother 
Stone,  and  she  positively  refused  to  be  tucked, 
but  kept  prowling  about  like  a  lost  spirit,  till 
Ruth  said,  in  desperation :  "  If  she  does  n't  get 
settled  down  pretty  soon  I  '11  do  something  des- 
perate ;  see  if  I  don't." 

From  room  to  room  she  went,  popping  her 
head  in  at  one  to  ask  if  there  was  anything  she 
could  do  for  this  girl,  listening  at  the  next  door 
for  sounds  of  insomnia,  creeping  stealthily  on 
through  the  corridors  to  learn  if  any  girl  who 
ought  to  be  en  route  for  Sleepy  Town  had  by 
chance  missed  her  way. 

She  had  made  her  way  as  far  as  the  lower 
end  of  the  hall,  where  on  one  side  the  stairs 
leading  to  the  third  story  joined  it,  and  on  the 
other  a  door  opened  into  the  bath-room,  when  a 
rustle  at  the  head  of  the  stairs  caused  her  to 
glance  quickly  in  that  direction ;  but  it  was  too 

234 


'WHAT    ARE    YOU    DOING? 

dark  for  lier  to  see  anything  at  the  top  of  them. 
She  paused  to  listen,  and  her  sharp  ears  de- 
tected the  sound  again.  That  was  sufficient. 
Up  she  flew  and  came  plump  upon  Lou  Corn- 
wall, who  had  not  had  time  to  fly.  Lou  was 
stout  and  did  not  move  quickly,  and  was  fair  prey 
for  Mrs.  Stone,  who  was  as  thin  as  a  match,  and 
managed  to  glide  about  like  a  wraith. 

Lou  was  arrayed  in  her  bath-robe,  and  had 
her  cap  and  mask  in  her  hand.  Quickly  con- 
cealing them  behind  her  lest  Mrs.  Stone's  sharp 
eyes  should  discover  them  even  in  the  dark,  she 
stood  stock  still  waiting  developments.  Mrs. 
Stone  stooped  from  her  towering  height  of  five 
feet  nine  to  peer  into  the  face  of  the  plump  little 
figure  huddled  in  the  corner.  "  How  you  startled 
me,"  she  said.  "  Why  are  you  standing  here 
when  everyone  else  is  in  bed,  and  what  are  you 
doing  up  this  time  of  night  ?  " 

"  I  had  to  get  up,  Mrs.  Stone." 

"  Why,  may  I  enquire  ?  " 

"  I  am  going  to  the  bath-room." 
235 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  Then,  why  in  the  world  don't  you  go  and  not 
stand  huddled  up  here  as  though  you  were  bent 
on  some  mischief?  It  is  no  wonder  that  we  sus- 
pect you  when  you  take  such  extraordinary 
ways  of  doing  perfectly  simple  things.  Go  on 
at  once,  and,  if  you  have  been  hesitating  because 
you  are  timid,  I  '11  wait  here  till  you  return," 
and  down  she  planted  herself  upon  the  top  step 
to  mount  guard. 

Groaning  inwardly,  away  went  Lou,  mutter- 
ing :  "If  I  don't  keep  you  perched  there  till 
you  nearly  freeze,  my  name  is  n't  Lou  Corn- 
wall?" 

And  keep  her  she  did,  till  Mrs.  Stone  had 
another  trouble  added  to  her  many,  for  she  be- 
gan to  fear  that  Lou  had  been  taken  ill,  and 
went  to  the  bath-room  door  to  speak  to  her. 
Finding  that  she  could  not  hold  out  any  longer, 
out  she  came,  and,  after  receiving  some  very 
emphatic  admonitions  from  Mrs.  Stone,  crept 
away  to  her  room  disgusted  with  herself,  the 
world  at  large,  and  Mrs.  Stone  in  particular. 

236 


WHAT    ARE    YOU    DOING? 

Meantime,  the  other  girls  began  to  suspect 
that  Lou  had  fallen  into  ambush,  and  sent  out  a 
scout  to  reconnoiter,  and  it  was  not  many  seconds 
before  the  scout  came  scuttling  back  with  the 
alarming  information  that  the  enemy  was  close 
at  hand ;  in  fact,  that  she  was  even  now  coming 
upon  them  in  force,  for,  when  Mother  Stone 
found  that  Lou  did  not  come  from  the  bath- 
room as  promptly  as  she  thought  she  should,  all 
her  suspicions  were  instantly  aroused,  and  she 
was  keen  to  make  discoveries. 

The  girls  had  planned  to  meet  in  Toinette's 
room,  and  creep  from  there  to  the  old  laundry 
as  soon  as  all  were  assembled.  About  a  dozen 
were  already  there,  but,  when  the  scout  returned 
with  such  dire  tidings,  they  decided  that  discre- 
tion was  the  better  part  of  valor,  and  all  made 
haste  to  get  back  to  their  rooms  ere  the  enemy 
appeared.  But,  alack-a-day !  that  enemy  could 
flit  about  in  a  surprisingly  lively  manner,  and, 
ere  some  of  them  had  reached  safety  behind 
their  own  doors,  she  came  in  view.  To  get  to 

237 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

their  rooms  now  was  out  of  the  question,  so, 
making  a  virtue  of  necessity,  they  all  slipped 
into  a  large  closet  used  by  the  housemaids  for 
their  brooms,  etc. 

Whether  it  was  from  a  wholesome  fear  that 
Miss  Preston  would  be  very  apt  to  criticize  a 
too  pronounced  vigilance  that  Mrs.  Stone  re- 
frained from  opening  the  girls'  doors,  but  con- 
tented herself  with  simply  listening,  I  cannot 
say,  but  if  she  heard  no  sound  within  she  always 
passed  on  and  left  them  to  their  innocent  (?)  slum- 
bers. So  on  she  went  from  one  room  to  another, 
but,  luckily,  the  alarm  had  gone  before,  and  at  each 
room  darkness  and  profound  silence  prevailed. 
Satisfied  that  "all  was  well,"  she  murmured  some- 
thing about,  "  It  is  always  well  to  be  upon  the 
alert,  for  once  the  girls  understand  that  someone 
is  sure  to  detect  the  first  signs  of  mischief,  they 
are  far  less  liable  to  carry  it  to  excess,"  she  set 
off  for  her  own  room.  In  passing  by  the  house- 
maid's door  she  saw  that  it  was  not  tightly 
closed  and  locked,  as  was  the  custom  at  night, 

238 


WHAT    ARE    YOU    DOING? 

and,  with  a  joyous  chuckle  at  her  own  astute- 
ness, she  pounced  upon  it,  locked  the  door,  and 
withdrawing  the  key  sailed  triumphantly  to  her 
room,  where,  serene  in  her  sense  of  well-doing, 
she  fell  as  sound  asleep  as  her  nature  permitted. 

Meantime,  how  fared  it  with  the  mice  in  the 
trap  ?  When  the  key  was  turned  in  the  door, 
and  they  were  made  prisoners,  nothing  but  the 
pitch  darkness  which  enveloped  them  as  a  gar- 
ment prevented  each  girl's  face  from  plainly 
announcing  to  her  neighbor  :  "  Here  is  a  pretty 
kettle  of  fish  !  "  There  were  five  in  the  closet : 
Ruth,  Edith,  Pauline,  May  and  Marie.  Luckily, 
a  resourceful  party.  When  all  sound  from  the 
hall  had  ceased,  Ruth  gave  just  one  howl,  and 
then  jumped  up  and  down  three  times  as  hard 
as  she  could  jump,  by  way  of  giving  vent  to 
her  state  ot  mind.  Fortunately,  the  door  was 
a  heavy  one  and  the  sound  did  not  reach  Mother 
Stone's  ears. 

"  You  crazy  thing ! "  exclaimed  Edith,  "  next 
239 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

thing  you  know  you  will  have  her  after  us 
again." 

"  Suppose  we  do ;  we  've  got  to  get  out  some- 
how, have  n't  we  ?  " 

"  Yes,  but  she  is  the  last  one  in  the  world  we 
want  to  let  us  out.  What  a  fix  !  If  the  girls 
only  knew  of  it,  they  would  come  and  let  us 
out." 

"  How  could  they  when  she  has  the  key,  I  'd 
like  to  know?" 

"  Edith  groaned  :  "  I  never  thought  of  that 
plagued  old  key.  Bother  take  her  and  it,  too ! 
Why  could  n't  she  have  gone  to  bed  just  as 
everybody  else  did,  and  have  minded  her  own 
business,  too." 

"  That  was  exactly  what  she  thought  she  was 
doing,"  laughed  May. 

"  It  's  all  very  well  to  laugh,  but  how  are  we 
to  get  down  to  the  laundry,  I  'd  like  to  know ; 
or  the  girls  ever  find  out  where  we  are  ?" 

While  all  this  talking  had  been  going  on, 
little  Marie,  the  liveliest,  slightest,  most  quick- 

240 


WHAT    ARE    YOU    DOING? 

witted  girl  in  the  school,  had  been  doing  a  lot 
of  thinking,  and  now  turned  to  the  others  and 
said: 

"  Do  you  see  that  scrap  of  a  window  up 
there?" 

"  Yes,  we  see  it,  but  it  might  as  well  be  a  rat- 
hole,  for  all  the  good  it  will  do  us ;  nothing  but 
a  rat  could  crawl  through  it !  " 

"  Don't  be  too  sure,"  answered  Marie,  with  a 
knowing  laugh.  "  I  can  get  through  a  pretty 
small  space  when  occasion  demands,  and,  if  I  'm, 
not  much  mistaken,  the  demand  is  very  urgent 
just  at  this  moment." 

"  How  under  the  sun  can  you  reach  it,  even 
if  you  can  get  through  it  after  you  've  reached 
it?" 

"What  good  have  you  derived  from  your 
gymnastic  training  this  winter,  I  'd  like  to 
know,  if  you  have  to  ask  me  that?"  demanded 
Marie. 

The  window  was  one  of  those  odd  little  affairs 
one  sometimes  sees  built  in  houses,  perhaps 

241 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

simply  to  excite  curiosity  and  make  one  wonder 
why  they  were  ever  built  at  all,  for  they  do  not 
seem  to  be  of  the  slightest  use.  The  one  in 
question  was  situated  high  up  in  the  closet,  and 
had  probably  been  put  there  for  ventilating  pur- 
poses, if  anyone  ever  felt  inclined  to  get  a  step- 
ladder  and  clamber  up  to  open  it.  It  was  shaped 
like  a  segment  of  a  circle,  was  only  about  eigh- 
teen inches  high  at  the  widest  part,  and  fastened 
at  the  top  with  a  bolt.  Getting  at  it  in  broad 
daylight  would  not  have  been  an  easy  matter, 
and  now,  with  only  the  light  of  the  moon  shin- 
ing through  it,  it  seemed  an  impossibility. 

242 


CHAPTER  XXVI 


"LOVE  (AND  SCHOOLGIRLS)   LAUGH  AT  LOCK- 


SMITHS " 


"~I~"TERE,  I  'm  going  to  take  command  of 
affairs,  since  no  one  else  seems  inclined 
to,"  cried  Marie.  "  May,  you  are  the 

strongest  girl  here ;  just  give  me  a  shoulder,  will 

you?" 

"What  shall  I  do?" 

"Stand  close  to  the  wall  underneath  the 
window,  and  let  me  get  on  your  shoulder ;  it 
may  hurt  a  bit,  but  we  can't  stay  stived  up  in 
here  all  night.  Lend  a  hand,  Ruth,  and  boost 
me  up." 

A  step-ladder  of  knees  and  arms  was  formed, 
and  up  scrambled  Marie  as  nimbly  as  a  squirrel. 
Then  another  obstacle  confronted  her.  The 

15 — Caj>f  and  Cape r*.  _. 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

window  had  probably  never  been  opened  since 
it  was  built,  and,  having  never  been  called  upon 
to  do  its  share  in  the  economy  of  that  house- 
hold, was  disinclined  to  begin  now.  Marie's 
slender  fingers  were  dented  and  pinched  in  vain ; 
that  window  remained  obdurate. 

"  For  mercy  sake  come  down  and  give  the 
old  thing  up  I  My  shoulder  is  crushed  flat," 
said  May. 

"  Wait  just  one  second  longer,  and  I  '11  have 
it ;  see  if  I  don't.  Ruth,  hand  me  that  stair- 
brush,  please." 

Ruth  gave  her  the  brush,  and,  saying  to  May : 
"  Now,  brace  yourself  for  a  mighty  push,"  she 
used  the  handle  as  a  lever,  gave  a  vigorous  jerk, 
when  away  went  bolt,  window,  Marie  and  all. 
Down  she  came  with  a  thud,  but,  luckily,  on  a 
pile  of  sweeping  cloths,  which  saved  her  from 
harm. 

Scrabbling  up,  she  cried :  "  Never  mind,  I  'm 
not  hurt  a  bit ;  now  boost  me  up  again,  and  let 
me  see  what  is  outside." 

244 


LOVE    LAUGHS    AT    LOCKSMITHS 

She  was  promptly  lifted  up,  and,  poking  her 
saucy  head  out  into  the  moonlight,  drew  in  long 
whiffs  of  the  sweet  night  air,  which  was  wonder- 
fully refreshing  after  the  stuffy  closet. 

"  The  shed  is  about  ten  feet  below,  girls.  If 
I  had  anything  to  lower  myself  down  with  I 
could  easily  reach  it ;  I'm  almost  afraid  to  let 
myself  drop,  the  shed  slopes  so." 

"  Hang  fast  a  second  while  Ruth  and  I  tie 
the  sweeping-cloths  together,"  cried  May,  and 
quickly  catching  up  the  calico  covers  they  be- 
gan to  tie  them  together. 

"See  that  you  tie  them  tightly,"  warned 
Marie.  "  I  Ve  had  one  bump  already,  and  I 
don't  want  another." 

The  cloths  were  soon  ready,  and  one  end 
handed  to  her.  She  fastened  it  securely  about 
her  waist,  and,  warning  the  others  to  hang  on 
for  dear  life,  she  began  to  crawl  through  the 
narrow  opening. 

"My  goodness,  she  is  just  like  a  monkey,"  said 
Pauline.  "  I  never  could  have  done  it  in  the 

245 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

world,"  a  most  superfluous  assertion,  as  no  one 
in  the  world  would  ever  have  suspected  her  of 
being  able  to. 

Away  went  Marie,  vanishing  bit  by  bit  from 
their  sight  till  only  her  laughing  black  eyes, 
with  the  soft  dark  hair  above  them,  were  visible 
in  the  moonlight.  The  girls  lowered  away 
slowly,  and  presently  felt  the  strain  upon  the 
cloths  relax. 

"  She  's  on  the  shed  !  Good  !  "  said  Edith, 
"  and  now  she  '11  have  us  out  in  less  than  jig 
time." 

But  "many  's  the  slip  twixt  the — lip  and  the 
birthday  box,"  and  the  girls  began  to  suspect 
Marie  of  treachery  to  the  cause  ere  they  again 
heard  her  voice. 

Meantime,  how  fared  it  with  her  ?  Once  upon 
the  shed  all  seemed  plain  sailing,  but  the  shed 
was  somewhat  like  the  mountains  Moses  climbed 
so  wearily ;  it  gave  her  a  glimpse  of  the  promised 
land  without  permitting  her  to  enter  it.  The 
ground  was  fully  sixteen  feet  below  her,  and  to 

246 


"AWAY   WENT   MARIE,   VANISHING   BIT   BY  BIT. 

247 


LOVE    LAUGHS    AT    LOCKSMITHS 

reach  it  without  some  means  other  than  her  own 
nimble  legs  was  obviously  impossible.  The  shed 
was  only  a  small  one  built  out  over  the  kitchen, 
but  just  beyond,  with  perhaps  five  feet  dividing 
them,  was  the  end  of  the  piazza  roof,  and  if  she 
could  only  reach  that  she  could  let  herself  down 
to  the  ground  by  the  thick  vines  growing  upon 
it.  But  those  five  feet  intervening  looked  a 
perfect  gulf,  and  how  to  get  over  them  was  a 
poser.  Jump  it  she  dared  not ;  step  it  she  could 
not.  It  began  to  look  as  though  she  must  sig- 
nal to  the  girls  in  the  closet  to  haul  in  their  big 
fish,  when  she  chanced  to  spy  something  stick- 
ing up  through  the  honeysuckle  vines.  Crawl- 
ing carefully  down  to  the  edge  of  the  shed, 
she  peered  over,  and  saw  the  ends  of  the  gar- 
dener's ladder.  Pauline  had  not  made  a  mis- 
take when  she  called  her  a  monkey,  for  in 
just  one  second  she  was  at  the  bottom  of  that 
ladder. 

"  Now  I  'm  all  right,  and  will  soon  have  the 
girls  free,"  and  off  she  scurried  to  the  side  of 

249 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

the  house  upon  which  Toinette's  room  was  sit- 
uated. Gathering  up  a  handful  of  soft  earth 
she  threw  it  against  the  window,  but  with  no  re- 
sult. Then  a  second  one  followed.  Had  she 
but  known  it,  Toinette  and  her  revellers  had 
long  ago  given  them  up,  and  were  now  down  in 
the  old  laundry  spreading  forth  their  array  of 
goodies.  After  wasting  considerable  time,  Marie 
suddenly  bethought  her  of  the  above  fact,  and  in- 
stantly skipped  off  to  that  Mecca. 

There  was  not  a  ray  of  light  visible,  but, 
happily,  sight  is  not  the  only  sense  with  which 
we  are  endowed,  and  Marie's  ears  were  as  keen 
as  her  eyes.  Giving  the  three  signal  taps  upon 
one  of  the  tightly  closed  window-blinds,  she 
waited  a  reply.  But  the  girls  were  not  expect- 
ing taps  from  that  quarter,  and  at  once  became 
suspicious.  But  precious  moments  were  fleeing, 
and  Marie  was  becoming  desperate,  so,  flinging 
prudence  to  the  winds,  she  gave  three  sounding 
bangs  upon  that  window,  and  called  out : 

"  If  you  don't  open  this  window  and  let  me 
250 


LOVE    LAUGHS    AT    LOCKSMITHS 

in  I  '11  set  Mother  Stone  on  your  track,  sure  as 
you  live  I " 

Open  flew  the  window,  and  a  moment  later 
Marie  was  relating  her  experiences  to  them. 
Then  came  the  question  of  rescuing  the  others. 
Not  an  easy  one  to  answer.  But  Marie  had 
gone  so  far,  and,  being  a  very  resourceful  little 
body,  had  no  notion  of  giving  up  yet,  and  say- 
ing to  the  revellers  :  "I  'm  going  to  let  those  girls 
out  if  I  have  to  take  the  door  down  to  do  it," 
off  she  flitted,  as  quickly  and  silently  as  a  but- 
terfly. In  less  time  than  it  takes  to  tell  it  she 
stood  outside  their  prison,  and  saying,  encourag- 
ingly: "Don't  give  up,  girls ;  I  '11  soon  have  you 
out,"  she  slipped  into  the  sewing-room  opposite, 
and  emerged  a  second  later  with  the  little  oil-can 
and  screw-driver  from  the  machine  drawer. 

"  For  gracious  sake,  what  are  you  going  to 
do  ?  "  whispered  Cicely,  who  had  come  with  her 
to  help  if  possible. 

"Something  I  once  saw  a  carpenter  at  our 
house  do,  if  I  can.  Sh !  Don't  make  any 


CAPS   AND    CAPERS 

noise,"  and,  reaching  up  to  the  top  hinge,  Marie 
dropped  a  few  drops  of  oil  from  her  can  upon 
it,  and  then  treated  the  lower  one  in  the  same 
manner.  The  hinges  were  what  are  known  as 
"  fish  hinges,"  the  door  being  held  in  place  by 
a  small  iron  peg  slipped  into  the  sockets  of  the 
hinge.  After  she  had  oiled  them,  she  placed 
her  screw-driver  under  the  knob  of  the  peg, 
when,  lo  I  up  it  slid  as  easily  as  could  be,  and 
when  both  had  been  carefully  slid  out  of  place, 
nothing  prevented  the  door  from  being  softly 
drawn  away  from  the  hinges,  swung  outward, 
and  if  it  did  not  open  from  left  to  right,  as  it 
had  been  intended  to  open,  it  was  quite  as 
easy  to  walk  through  it  when  it  opened  from 
right  to  left.  To  slip  it  back  into  place,  when 
five  giggling  girls  had  escaped,  was  equally 
easy,  and  no  one  would  ever  have  suspected 

the  skillful  bit  of  mechanical  engineering  that 

i 

had  taken  place  under  their  very  noses  at  ten- 
thirty  that  night. 

252 


CHAPTER  XXVII 
ARIADNE'S  CLUE 

THE  manner  in  which  those  liberated  girls 
skipped  down  to  the  laundry  was  cer- 
tainly not  snail-like.  They  had  nearly 
reached  it  when  Ruth's  feet  became  entangled  in 
a  piece  of  string,  and,  stooping  down  to  loosen 
it,  she  discovered  a  slip  of  paper  fastened  to  the 
end,  and  a  large  pin  which  had  evidently  stuck 
it  fast  to  the  door-casing.  No  doubt  some  of 
the  girls  had  brushed  against  it  in  their  hurry- 
scurry  to  reach  the  laundry,  and,  but  for  the 
ill  wind  which  blew  five  of  them  into  the  house- 
maid's closet,  this  significant  scrap  of  paper 
would  never  have  been  discovered.  The  candle 
they  carried  was  brought  to  bear  upon  it,  and 
they  read  the  following  words : 

253 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

In  ancient  days,  so  the  stories  say, 
One  Theseus  found  a  remarkable  way 
Of  reaching  a  point  he  wished  to  gain, 
And  down  to  posterity  came  his  fame. 

So,  perhaps,  posterity  may  also  do  well 
To  follow  a  "  clue,"  but  never  to  tell 
Just  what  they  found  at  the  further  end, 
Lest  a  rule  should  break  instead  of  bend. 

"  What  can  it  mean  ?  Where  does  it  lead 
to  ?  "  were  the  questions  eagerly  whispered. 

"Come  on,  and  let 's  find  out,"  was  Ruth's 
practical  remark,  and  she  began  to  wind  up  the 
string.  There  seemed  no  end  to  it,  and  it  led 
them  through  the  corridor,  out  of  that  into  the 
kitchen,  then  out  to  a  small  store-room  built  be- 
neath the  kitchen  porch.  Here  the  end  was  tied 
to  a  very  suggestive-looking  tub. 

Had  Diogenes  succeeded  in  discovering  an 
honest  man  he  could  not  have  felt  greater  satis- 
faction than  these  girls  felt  at  the  sight  of  that 
modest  little  oval  tub,  with  its  sawdust  cover- 
ing ;  and  the  way  in  which  it  was  pounced  upon, 

254 


ARIADNE'S    CLUE 

and  borne  in  triumph  to  the  laundry,  brings  my 
story  of  that  night's  revels  to  a  climax,  and  no 
more  need  be  told. 

When  the  twelve  o'clock  train  whistled  it  was 
the  signal  for  the  revels  to  end,  and,  ere  the 
carriages  which  were  to  meet  the  theatre-goers 
could  bring  them  up  the  hill,  Sunny  Bank  was 
as  quiet  and  peaceful  as  though  all  its  inmates 
had  been  dreaming  for  hours. 

The  weather  had  become  beautifully  soft  and 
balmy  for  the  middle  of  April,  and  the  girls 
were  able  to  sit  out  of  doors,  and  do  many  of 
the  things  they  had  not  hoped  to  do  till  May 
should  burgeon  and  bloom. 

A  few  days  after  the  frolic  Toinette  was  sitting 
in  one  of  the  pretty  little  summer-houses,  of 
which  there  were  several  dotted  about  the 
grounds,  when  Miss  Howard  came  in  and  took 
her  seat  beside  her. 

"  You  have  been  playing  at  hide-and-seek 
with  me  without  knowing  it,"  she  said,  "  for  I 
have  been  searching  for  you  everywhere,  and 

255 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

only  discovered  you  here  by  the  glint  of  the  sun- 
shine upon  your  hair." 

"  Did  you  want  me,  Miss  Howard  ?  I  'm  sorry 
you  had  to  hunt  for  me,"  answered  Toinette. 
"  What  can  I  do  for  you  ?  " 

"  Give  me  some  wise  advice,"  said  Miss  How- 
ard, smiling. 

"/give  you  advice  ! "  exclaimed  Toinette. 

"  Yes ;  don't  you  think  you  can  ?  " 

"I  shall  have  to  know  what  it  is  about  be- 
fore I  dare  say  yes  or  no,  Miss  Howard." 

"  You  know  that  I  am  going  to  leave  you  in 
a  few  weeks,  dear,  and  I  want  my  leave-taking 
to  be  closely  identified  with  my  girls,  whom  I 
have  learned  to  love  so  dearly,  and  whom,  I 
think,  love  me  as  well  as  I  love  them.  I  have 
spent  many  happy  years  in  this  school,  first  as 
pupil  and  then  as  teacher,  and  it  has  been  a  very 
dear  home  to  me.  Now  I  am  going  away  from 
it  forever,  and  though  the  future  looks  very 
enticing,  and  I  have  every  reason  to  believe 
that  it  will  be  happy,  still  I  cannot  help 


ARIADNE'S    CLUE 

feeling  sad  at  the  thought  of  leaving  the  old 
life  behind.  These  are  serious  confidences  for 
me  to  burden  you  with,  Toinette,  but  you  have 
crept  into  a  very  warm  corner  of  my  heart  since 
you  became  a  pupil  here,  and  I  know  that  there 
is  a  wise  little  head  upon  these  shoulders,"  said 
Miss  Howard,  as  she  placed  her  hand  on  Toin- 
ette's  shoulder. 

The  girl  reached  up,  and  drawing  the  hand 
close  to  her  cheek  held  it  there,  but  did  not  speak. 

"  So  now,"  continued  Miss  Howard,  "  I  am 
going  to  ask  you  to  help  my  outgoing  from  this 
happy  home  to  be  a  pleasant  one,  by  being  my 
maid  of  honor  when  the  time  comes ;  will  you, 
dear  ?  " 

"  You  want  me  to  be  the  maid  of  honor,  Miss 
Howard?  You  don't  truly  mean  it?  There 
are  so  many  other  girls  whom  you  have  known 
so  much  longer,  and  whom  you  must  love  better 
than  you  do  me ;  although  I  don't  believe  they 
can  love  you  any  better  than  I  do,"  said  Toin- 
ette, naively. 

257 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"That  is  just  it,  dear.  I  do  love  them  all,  and 
am  sure  that  they  are  very  fond  of  me.  But 
in  your  case  it  is  just  a  little  different.  All 
these  girls  have  pleasant  homes,  and  many  loved 
ones  in  them  who  plan  for  their  happiness,  and 
to  whom  they  will  go  directly  vacation  begins. 
For  many  years  you,  like  myself,  have  had 
no  home  but  the  one  a  school  offered,  and  which, 
unlike  mine,  was  sometimes  not  as  happy  a  home 
as  it  might  have  been,  I  fear.  So,  you  see,  we 
have,  in  one  way,  had  a  bond  of  sympathy  be- 
tween us  even  before  we  knew  it  to  be  so.  And 
now  we  have  still  another,  for  when  we  leave 
here  in  June  we  shall  each  go  to  our  own  dear 
home;  you  to  one  your  father  shall  make  for 
you,  I  to  the  one  my  husband  will  provide  for 


me." 


A  soft,  pretty  color  had  crept  over  Miss  How- 
ard's face  as  she  spoke,  and  a  very  tender  look 
came  into  her  beautiful  eyes.  Truly,  she  was 
carrying  something  very  sweet  and  holy  to  the 
one  who  was  to  bear  that  name. 

258 


ARIADNE'S    CLUE 

"So  we  shall  step  out  into  the  new  life  to- 
gether, shall  we  not,  Toinette,  and  each  will  be 
the  sweeter  for  our  having  done  so  ? "  asked 
Miss  Howard. 

"  It  is  too  lovely  even  to  think  about,  Miss 
Howard.  I  don't  know  how  to  make  you  under- 
stand how  proud  and  happy  it  makes  me  to 
think  that  you  chose  me  from  among  all  the 
others,  and  I  hope  they  will  not  feel  that  you 
should  not  have  done  so.  Do  you  think  they 
will  mind?" 

"  On  the  contrary,  they  are  delighted  with 
my  choice,  for  I  told  them  my  reasons,  as  I  have 
told  them  to  you,  and  they  see  it  in  the  same 
light  that  I  see  it." 

"  Then  I  shall  be  the  happiest  girl  in  Mont- 
cliff,"  cried  Toinette. 

"No, next  to  the  happiest,"  said  Miss  Howard, 
laughing  softly. 

"  Well,  I  shall  be  the  happiest  in  my  way, 
and  you  in  yours,"  and  Toinette  wagged  her 

259 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

head  as  though  it  would  be  of  no  use  for  Miss 
Howard  to  try  to  make  her  concede  that  point. 

"And  now  let  us  plan  our  maid  of  honor's 
toilet,  and  also  what  our  six  bridesmaids  must 
wear.  It  was  upon  that  important  question  I 
wished  your  advice,  and,  now  that  you  know,  do 
you  feel  qualified  to  give  it  ?  " 

"Oh,  how  lovely!"  cried  Toinette.  "Why, 
Miss  Howard,  it  is  almost  like  planning  for  my 
own  wedding,  and  you  are  too  sweet  for  any- 
thing to  let  me." 

260 


CHAPTER   XXVin 
"WHEN  BUDS  AND  BLOSSOMS  BURST" 

THE  planning  of  the  toilets  took  consider- 
able time,  and   Miss   Howard    felt  that 
she  had  made  no  mistake  when  she  asked 
the  girl's  advice.     Like  her  father's,  Toinette's 
taste  was  unerring,  and  when  she  said : 

"  Would  n't  it  be  pretty  to  have  the  girls 
represent  flowers  ?  "  Miss  Howard  was  delighted 
with  the  idea. 

"What  flowers  would  you  suggest,  dear?"  she 
asked. 

"  Let  me  think  just  a  moment,  please,"  said 
Toinette,  and  she  rested  her  chin  upon  her  hands, 
a  favorite  attitude  of  hers  when  thinking  seriously 
of  anything.  "  How  would  a  lily,  a  violet,  a 

16  —  Caps  and  Capers.  2  6 1 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

pansy,  a  daffodil,  a  narcissus,  and  a  snowdrop 
do?" 

"  How  pretty !  "  exclaimed  Miss  Howard. 
"What  put  such  a  picturesque  idea  in  your 
head  ?  It  is  beautiful,  and  can  be  carried  out 
admirably.  You  must  be  my  fair  and  lovely 
lily ;  then  shall  come  my  violet  and  daffodil ; 
then  my  narcissus  and  lilac ;  then  my  pansy  and 
modest  little  snowdrop.  That  will  exactly  suit 
Helen." 

"  Who  are  to  be  the  bridesmaids  ?  " 

"Edith,  May,  Ruth,  Marie,  Natala  and 
Helen." 

"  How  nice  of  you  to  choose  all  the  younger 
girls ;  it  makes  us  feel  so  important.  Now,  let 's 
plan  just  what  the  dresses  are  to  be,"  said 
Toinette,  becoming  quite  excited,  and  looking  at 
Miss  Howard  as  though  all  must  be  completed 
ere  they  left  the  summer-house. 

"I  am  waiting  for  your  suggestions,"  said  she. 

"Would  n't  it  be  pretty  to  have  all  the  dresses 
made  of  white  chiffon,  or  something  soft  like 

262 


WHEN  BUDS  AND  BLOSSOMS  BURST 

that,  and  have  white,  violet  and  yellow  slips 
under  them?  Then  have  the  hats  trimmed  with 
the  flowers  they  represent.  Would  you  like 
that,  Miss  Howard?" 

"  Yes,  immensely ;  but  now  I  want  to  think 
about  Helen.  You  know  she  has  very  limited 
means,  and  what  might  seem  a  small  outlay  for 
the  others  would  probably  be  a  large  one  for  her, 
and  I  do  not  want  to  tax  her  resources,  much 
as  I  wish  to  have  her  for  one  of  my  bonny 
maids." 

"Yes,"  said  Toinette,  meditatively,  "I  sup- 
pose the  dresses  will  be  rather  expensive,  but  it 
would  be  too  bad  not  to  have  Helen ;  she  is  so 
sweet  and  is  so  fond  of  you,  Miss  Howard." 

"  Yes,  she  is  a  dear  child,  and  I  have  felt  a 
great  interest  in  her  from  the  moment  she  en- 
tered the  school.  I  wish  I  knew  of  some  way 
of  bettering  her  circumstances.  Mr.  Burgess  is 
a  most  estimable  man,  but  not  one  liable  to  ad- 
vance rapidly  through  his  own  efforts,  I  fear. 
He  is  most  reliable  and  capable,  but  seems  to 

263 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

lack  the  push  so  essential  in  this  bustling  day 
and  age.  He  would  prove  invaluable  in  any 
position  of  trust,  but  would  never  secure  such  if 
it  depended  upon  his  own  efforts  to  do  so." 

Toinette  had  listened  very  attentively  while 
Miss  Howard  was  talking,  and  when  she  finished 
said : 

"  When  papa  was  out  here  for  the  dance  I 
spoke  to  him  about  Helen,  and  we  had  such  a 
nice  little  talk.  The  next  day  he  spoke  with 
Miss  Preston  about  those  very  things,  but  I  do 
not  know  what  came  of  it.  I  wish  I  did.  His 
business  affairs  bring  him  into  contact  with  so 
many  large  firms  of  different  kinds  that  I  am 
almost  sure  he  could  secure  something  for  Mr. 
Burgess.  Do  you  know  what  I  am  going  to 
do?"  said  Toinette,  eagerly,  "I  am  going  to 
write  to  him  right  off,  tell  him  all  about  our 
plans  ;  may  I?  About  the  wedding,  the  brides- 
maids, and  everything ;  then  I  am  going  to 
ask  him  if  he  has  heard  of  anything  that  he 
thinks  would  help  Mr.  Burgess,  and,  who  knows, 

264 


WHEN  BUDS  AND  BLOSSOMS  BURST 

maybe,  by  the  first  of  June  all  will  be  fixed  up 
so  nicely  that  Helen  can  have  things  as  nice 
as  the  other  girls — and,  oh,  Miss  Howard ! — 
would  n't  it  be  lovely  if  she  could  go  abroad  with 
Miss  Preston  ?  "  and  Toinette  clasped  her  hands 
in  rapture  at  the  very  thought. 

Miss  Howard  laughed  a  happy  little  laugh, 
and,  taking  Toinette's  face  in  both  her  hands, 
kissed  her  cheeks  very  tenderly,  saying  as  she 
did  so : 

"  I  see  that  I  made  no  mistake  in  my  estimate 
of  your  character,  dear,  although  I  did  not  bar- 
gain for  quite  such  a  wise,  resourceful  little 
head  and  efficient  helper  as  you  have  proved. 
How  did  you  manage  to  think  out  so  much  in 
so  short  a  time  ?  " 

"  I  suppose  it  is  because  my  brains  have  never 
been  overburdened  with  thoughts  for  other  peo- 
ple," said  Toinette,  with  an  odd  expression  over- 
spreading her  face,  "and  so  the  part  of  them 
devoted  to  that  sort  of  thing  has  had  time  to  de- 
velop to  an  astonishing  degree.  But  I  guess  I  'd 

265 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

better  begin  to  use  the  power  before  it  becomes 
abnormal ;  Miss  Preston  says  that  abnormal 
development  of  any  sort  is  dangerous,"  and  she 
gave  a  funny  little  laugh  as  she  glanced  slyly 
into  Miss  Howard's  eyes. 

Miss  Howard  understood  the  quaint  remark, 
and,  rising  from  her  seat,  said:  "I  shall  not  soon 
forget  our  little  talk,  but  must  leave  you  now  for 
the  'school  ma'am's'  duties.  One  of  them  will 
be  to  endeavor  to  persuade  Pauline  that  it  was 
not  Henry  VIII.  who  sought  to  reduce  the 
American  Colonies  to  submission,  nor  Lafayette 
who  won  the  battle  of  Waterloo.  Good-bye," 
and  away  tripped  Miss  Howard  over  the  soft 
green  lawn. 

Toinette  sat  for  a  few  moments,  and  then, 
springing  up,  said  to  herself:  "I  might  as  well 
go  and  write  that  letter  this  very  minute,  and  I 
do  hope  papa  will  know  of  something  right  off. 
How  lovely  it  would  be  ! " 

The  letter  was  soon  written,  and  within  two 
hours  was  speeding  upon  its  way  to  New  York. 

266 


WHENBUDS  AND  BLOSSOMS  BURST 

Toinette  had  reasoned  well,  and,  as  good  luck 
would  have  it,  the  letter  arrived  at  a  most  au- 
spicious moment.  As  Mr.  Reeve  sat  reading  it, 
his  face  reflecting  the  happiness  he  felt  at  re- 
ceiving it  so  close  upon  the  one  which  came  to 
him  every  Monday  morning,  a  client  was  shown 
into  his  office. 

It  happened  to  be  one  who  was  about  to  em- 
bark upon  a  new  line  of  business  in  which  he 
was  venturing  large  sums  of  money,  and  which 
required  capable,  trustworthy  men  to  carry  out 
his  plans.  He  had  consulted  with  Mr.  Reeve 
many  times  before,  and  nearly  all  details  were 
completed;  the  few  that  remained  dealt  with 
minor  matters,  so  Mr.  Reeve  felt  considerable 
satisfaction  at  the  thought  of  having  brought  all 
arrangements  through  so  successfully.  But  it 
was  certainly  anything  but  a  contented  face  he 
saw  before  him  when  he  glanced  up  from  Toin- 
ette's  letter  upon  Mr.  Fowler's  entrance,  and 
his  first  words  were :  "  Well,  for  a  prosperous 
capitalist,  you  bear  a  woeful  countenance,  Ned." 

267 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

"  If  mine  is  woeful,  yours  certainly  is  not," 
was  the  prompt  answer.  "  You  look  as  though 
you  had  been  the  recipient  of  some  very  pleas- 
ing news." 

"A  pretty  good  sort,"  said  Mr.  Reeve,  smil- 
ing. "The  sort  that  makes  a  man  feel  old  and 
young  at  the  same  time.  Ever  get  any  of  that?" 

"  Don't  know  as  I  do ;  it  must  be  a  rare  speci- 
men," said  Mr.  Fowler,  dryly.  "  Better  let  me 
know  the  kind  it  is;  perhaps  it  will  counter- 
balance the  kind  I  have  for  you  this  morning  ; 
confound  it ! " 

Seeing  that  Mr.  Fowler  was  really  disturbed 
about  something,  Mr.  Reeve  dropped  his  banter- 
ing tone,  and  went  to  serious  matters.  He  then 
learned  that  the  bookkeeper  whom  Mr.  Fowler 
had  engaged  for  the  new  line  of  business,  and 
who  would  also  act  as  his  confidential  clerk  and 
office  manager,  would  be  unable  to  accept  the 
position,  as  he  was  called  to  England  by  the 
death  of  his  father,  and  would  in  future  make 
his  home  there.  This  was  a  serious  loss  to  Mr. 

268 


WHEN  BUDS  AND  BLOSSOMS  BURST 

Fowler,  for  he  had  known  this  man  for  years, 
1  and  felt  deep  satisfaction  at  the  thought  of  hav- 
ing such  an  efficient  assistant. 

"And  now,"  he  said,  when  he  had  told  Mr. 
Reeve  all  the  facts,  "  who  under  heavens  am  I 
to  find  to  fill  his  place  at  such  short  notice,  I  'd 
like  to  know  ?  Such  men  are  not  to  be  picked 
up  at  every  corner." 

"  Read  that  letter,"  was  all  Mr.  Reeve  said, 
and  handed  him  Toinette's  letter. 

Mr.  Fowler  took  the  letter,  and  began  reading 
with  a  very  mystified  expression,  as  though  he 
could  not  for  the  life  of  him  understand  what  a 
letter  from  Mr.  Reeve's  daughter  had  to  do  with 
his  private  affairs.  But,  as  he  read,  his  expression 
changed,  and  when  he  came  to  the  end  he  said: 
"  Well,  it  may  be  Kismet ;  can't  say.  Funnier 
things  have  happened.  Look  into  it,  will  you, 
Clayton  ?  I  'm  sick  and  tired  of  the  thing, 
particularly  when  I  thought  all  important  de- 
tails settled." 

And  Clayton  Reeve  did  "look  into  it"  very 
269 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

thoroughly,  leaving  no  stone  unturned  which 
would  help  him  to  learn  all  that  it  was  necessary 
i  to  know  about  Mr.  Burgess,  and  nothing  could 
possibly  have  been  more  gratifying  than  what 
he  learned.  As  a  result  of  it,  Mr.  Burgess  was 
offered  the  position  from  June  first,  and  the 
salary  offered  with  it  seemed  a  princely  one  to 
him  as  compared  to  the  one  he  had  received  as 
clerk  in  the  bank  in  Montcliff.  It  would  be 
hard  to  understand  the  happiness  which  that 
schoolgirl  letter  brought  to  one  family,  or  how 
the  writing  of  it  changed  two  lives  very  ma- 
terially, and  a  third  completely. 

270 


CHAPTER  XXIX 
COMMENCEMENT 

MANY  a  girl  has  asked :  "  Why  do  they 
call  it  commencement  when  it  is  really 
the  end?"     If  they  have  not  found  out 
why,  I  am  not  going  to  tell  the  secret.     But  one 
thing  /  have  found  out  is  this :  Never  in  after 
life  do  we  ever  feel  quite  so  important  as  we  do 
when  that  day  has  been  reached  upon  our  life's 
calendar. 

It  was  no  exception  at  Sunny  Bank,  and  when 
the  fifth  of  June  dawned  that  year  it  found  a 
busy,  bustling  household.  No,  I  am  not  telling 
the  exact  truth  :  it  was  not  when  it  dawned,  but 
fully  three  hours  later,  and  then  began  the  hurry- 
scurry  which  continued  till  all  were  assembled 
in  chapel  to  listen  to  the  opening  prayer  of  the 

271 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

good  man  who  had  for  many  a  year  opened  the 
Sunny  Bank  commencement  exercises. 

He  had  grown  old  in  faithful  service  in  Mont- 
cliff,  and  was  beloved  and  revered  by  all. 

It  is  of  no  use  for  me  to  tell  you  all  about 
those  exercises ;  to  an  outsider  they  were  exactly 
like  many  others  that  had  taken  place  before ; 
to  the  girls  themselves  they  were  unique,  and 
stood  out  pre-eminent  above  all  others.  Every- 
body was  there  who  had  the  smallest  excuse  for 
being,  and  just  how  happy  six  bodies  were  I 
will  leave  you  to  learn  from  what  follows. 

The  exercises  were  to  take  place  in  the  even- 
ing, and  all  day  long  relatives  and  friends  of  the 
girls  arrived  thick  and  fast.  Among  the  first 
.was  Toinette's  father.  "  Could  n't  wait  till  even- 
ing, you  see,"  he  cried,  as  he  met  Toinette  at 
the  railway  station.  "  Yes,  it  is  all  settled ;  I 
got  them  by  a  lucky  chance  at  the  very  last 
moment." 

"  Did  you  say  anything  to  Mr.  Burgess  about 
it?"  asked  Toinette. 

272 


COMMENCEMENT 

"  No,  I  have  not  seen  him ;  daresay  he  has 
had  his  hands  full  since  the  first.  We  '11  speak 
to  Miss  Preston  first,  and  then  call  at  the  Bur- 
gess' and  tell  them." 

"  How  perfectly  splendid !  Oh,  daddy,  you 
are  a  perfect  wonder  !  How  do  you  ever  manage 
to  fetch  things  about  so  successfully  ?  " 

"  Because  I  have  found  a  wonderful  incentive 
to  spur  me  on,"  he  answered  as  he  handed  her 
into  the  carriage  which  was  waiting  for  them, 
and  they  whirled  off  up  the  hill. 

"And  you  will  stay  here  till  after  the  wed- 
ding, won't  you?"  asked  Toinette,  snuggling 
close  to  his  side  and  slipping  her  arm  through 
his. 

"  What !  Five  whole  days  ?  What  will  you 
do  with  me  all  that  time  ?  " 

"  No  danger  of  your  suffering  from  ennui,  I 
guess,"  laughed  Toinette.  "  I  will  guarantee  to 
keep  you  occupied.  And  then,  daddy,  after  all 
is  over  we  '11  go  off  together,  and  won't  we  have 
glorious  times !  "  and  she  gave  a  rapturous  little 

273 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

bounce  at  the  thought  of  the  delightful  days  to 
come. 

Miss  Preston  was  to  sail  for  Europe  on  the 
fifteenth  of  June,  five  days  after  Miss  Howard's 
wedding,  and  six  girls  were  to  go  with  her. 
When  it  became  an  understood  thing  that  Mr. 
Burgess'  financial  affairs  were  to  be  so  improved, 
the  possibility  of  Helen  making  one  of  the  party 
was  talked  over,  although  Mrs.  Burgess  was  filled 
with  dismay  at  the  thought  of  having  her 
daughter  take  such  a  step  upon  such  short  no- 
tice ;  it  seemed  a  tremendous  thing  to  that  quiet, 
home-staying  body.  Still,  Miss  Preston  had 
long  been  anxious  to  have  Helen  go  with  her, 
and,  now  that  there  seemed  no  further  obstacle 
to  her  doing  so,  could  not  make  up  her  mind  to 
go  without  her. 

She  had  talked  it  over  with  both  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Burgess,  but,  it  must  be  confessed,  had  met 
with  only  lukewarm  enthusiasm.  Furthermore, 
it  was  very  late  in  the  day  to  secure  stateroom 
accommodation  upon  the  steamer  by  which  Miss 

274 


Preston  would  sail,  her  own  and  the  girls  hav- 
ing been  engaged  for  weeks. 

Helen  herself  said  very  little,  but  Miss  Pres- 
ton knew  that  the  girl's  heart  had  long  been  set 
upon  going,  and  this  year  the  route  planned 
took  in  the  very  points  she  had  most  wished  to 
visit,  and  which  would  prove  the  most  profitable 
for  her  to  visit.  In  desperation,  Miss  Preston 
turned  to  Mr.  Reeve  once  more,  for  she  had 
found  him  a  most  resourceful  man,  and  one  not 
likely  to  be  easily  baffled. 

The  result  was  that  he  had  succeeded  in  mak- 
ing a  mutually  agreeable  exchange  of  staterooms 
with  some  other  people,  and  was  now  primed 
and  ready  to  carry  the  war  into  the  enemy's 
country. 

Soon  after  luncheon  they  all  drove  to  Stony- 
brook,  a  town  about  ten  miles  from  Montcliff, 
and  Helen's  home.  Evidently  their  persuasive 
powers  were  strong,  for  ere  the  visit  ended  it  was 
decided  that  Helen  should  make  one  of  Miss 
Preston's  party  to  sail  with  her  "  over  the  ocean 
275 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

blue,"  and  some  very  happy  people  drove  back 
to  Montcliff  that  afternoon. 

The  house  seemed  very  quiet  after  the  girls' 
departure  for  their  homes  on  the  day  following 
commencement,  for,  excepting  those  who  lived 
too  far  away  to  return  for  the  wedding,  and 
would  remain  as  Miss  Preston's  guests  until  after 
the  tenth,  all  had  left  that  morning,  and  when 
a  house  has  been  filled  with  twenty-five  or  thirty 
girls,  and  all  but  eight  or  ten  suddenly  depart 
from  it,  the  quiet  which  ensues  cannot  be  over- 
looked. 

Mr.  Reeve  gave  himself  up  to  the  enjoyment 
of  his  five  days'  vacation  as  only  a  busy  man 
can,  and  when  I  add  that  he  was  a  very  happy 
man,  too,  I  need  say  no  more. 

The  year  had  been  one  of  many  experiences 
both  for  him  and  for  Toinette,  and  for  both  was 
ending  far  more  happily  than  he  had  hoped  it 
would.  The  future  seemed  to  promise  a  great 
deal  to  them  both,  for  they  were  growing  to  un- 
derstand each  other  better  every  day,  and  Toin- 

276 


COMMENCEMENT 

ette  was  developing  into  a  very  lovely,  as  well  as 
a  very  lovable,  companion.  They  had  planned 
a  delightful  summer  vacation,  to  be  spent  in 
travelling  leisurely  from  place  to  place,  as  the 
fancy  took  them,  and  Tpinette  had  suggested 
nearly  all. 

The  five  days  at  Montcliff  were  spent  in  driv- 
ing about  the  beautiful  country,  playing  tennis, 
rambling  about  the  pretty  woods,  and  doing  an 
endless  number  of  delightful  nothings,  as  people 
can  sometimes  do  when  they  fully  make  up  their 
minds  to  put  aside  the  cares  of  the  world  for  a 
time. 

They  soon  came  to  an  end,  and  then  came  Miss 
Howard's  wedding  day. 

There  has  always  seemed  something  inex- 
pressibly sweet  in  Longfellow's  words  in  refer- 
ence to  the  forming  of  new  ties  and  establishing 
the  new  home.  In  Miss  Howard's  case  it  was 
to  be  a  home  filled  with  all  the  sweetest  hopes 
that  can  come  into  a  woman's  life  :  hopes  sancti- 
fied by  love  and  founded  upon  respect.  Could 


if  — 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

they  have  a  firmer  foundation  ?  The  future 
held  great  promise  for  her,  although  worldly- 
minded  folk  might  say  that  the  step  she  was 
about  to  take  was  not  marked  off  by  a  golden 
milestone,  nor  the  path  she  would  follow  be 
paved  with  a  golden  pavement.  She  knew  that 
quite  well,  and  had  wisely  decided  that  a  noble 
character  and  a  brilliant  mind  were  excellent 
substitutes,  however,  agreeable  it  may  be  to  have 
the  former,  and,  also,  that  the  former  minus  the 
latter  are  fairy  gold. 

278 


CHAPTER  XXX 

"  0  fortunate,  0  happy  day, 

When  a  new  household  finds  its  place 
Among  the  myriad  homes  of  earth, 
Like  a  new  star  just  sprung  to  birth, 
And  rolled  on  its  harmonious  way 

Into  the  boundless  realms  of  space  !  " 

AS  though  all  that  was  loveliest  had  united 
to  do  her  honor,  and  make  the  boundary- 
line  between  the  old  and  the  new  life 
one  to  be  long  remembered  by  all  who  stood  be- 
side her  at  it,  the  day  set  for  Miss  Howard's 
wedding  was  all  that  Lowell  has  written  about  it. 
It  was  as  "rare"  and  "perfect"  as  dear  Mother 
Nature  could  make  it  for  one  of  her  loveliest 
children. 

The   girls    had  dressed  the  church,  until  it 
seemed  a  very  bower  of  bloom,  and  at  every  turn 

279 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

Miss  Howard  would  find  the  posies  of  which  she 
was  so  fond.  The  three  colors,  if  white  may  be 
called  a  color,  chosen  for  the  bridesmaids'  dresses 
were  used  in  the  decorations,  and  altar,  chancel, 
transept  and  aisles  were  brilliant  with  daffodils, 
narcissuses  and  lilacs,  which  filled  the  church 
with  their  perfume. 

The  wedding  was  to  take  place  at  four  o'clock, 
and  when  that  hour  arrived  little  space  was  left 
in  the  church  for  the  tardy  ones. 

Nearly  all  the  girls  had  returned  for  the  cere- 
mony, and  a  bonnier  lot  it  would  have  been  diffi- 
cult to  find  than  th,at  which  filled  the  front  pews 
of  tire  church,  for  Miss  Howard  would  have 
them  all  near  her,  insisting  that  none  of  the 
other  guests  could  possibly  have  the  same  loving 
thoughts  for  her  that  her  girls  would  have. 

Promptly  at  the  stroke  of  four  the  great  organ 
rolled  out  its  message  to  all,  and,  after  her  few 
distant  relatives  had  been  conducted  to  their 
seats,  Miss  Howard's  bonny  bridesmaids  ap- 
peared, following  another  fancy  o/ hers  by  walk- 

280 


O   FORTUNATE,    O   HAPPY   DAY 

ing  together,  with  the  ushers  leading.  First 
came  Edith  and  Marie ;  Edith's  yellow  golden  hair 
a  perfect  background  for  the  big  white  chip  hat, 
with  its  masses  of  violets,  and  her  fair,  soft  skin 
made  softer  and  fairer  by  the  fairy-like  chiffon 
draped  so  artistically  over  the  pale  violet  satin 
beneath  it.  A  daintily  gilded  basket  filled  with 
violets  told  all  the  story. 

Saucy  and  pert  beside  her  walked  the  little 
brownie  Marie,  looking  for  all  the  world  like 
the  bobbing  daffies  in  her  white  basket.  One 
wanted  to  sing  the  old  nursery  rhyme  :  "  Daffy- 
down-dilly  has  come  to  town,"  for  they  were 
nodding  a  friendly  greeting  from  her  hat,  and 
seemed  to  lend  their  golden  sheen  to  the  satin 
beneath  the  white  chiffon  gown. 

Behind  them  followed  May  Foster  and  Natala 
King.  May's  bronze-brown  hair  and  brilliant 
coloring  were  a  perfect  foil  for  the  creamy-white 
narcissus  blossoms  on  her  hat  and  the  creamy- 
white  of  her  gown.  While  Natala's  light-brown 

281 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

hair  and  hazel  eyes  needed  just  the  lilac  tints  to 
show  how  pretty  they  were. 

Then  came  Ruth  and  Helen.  Could  Miss 
Howard  have  chosen  two  who,  placed  beside 
each  other,  would  have  formed  a  more  pro- 
nounced contrast?  Not  even  the  solemnity  of 
the  occasion  could  overcome  Ruth's  ruling  pas- 
sion, curiosity  :  she  was  determined  to  see  all  to 
be  seen  if  it  rested  with  her  to  do  so.  Nor  were 
the  pert  pansy  blossoms  upon  her  hat,  nodd- 
ing a  welcome  to  all,  more  on  the  alert.  Or 
could  those  which  peeped  from  the  folds  of  her 
pansy-yellow  gown,  with  its  white  chiffon  dra- 
peries, smile  in  a  more  friendly  manner  than 
did  Ruth,  as  she  walked  slowly  up  that  aisle, 
with  shy,  modest  Helen  at  her  side.  Helen 
looked  the  snowdrop  to  perfection,  for  if  the 
pansies  needed  Ruth's  gypsy  coloring  for  a  foil, 
the  snowdrops  needed  Helen's  pale  blonde  dain- 
tiness for  theirs.  The  only  color  which  relieved 
its  pure  white  was  the  deep  green  of  the  wax- 
like  leaves,  and  the  contrast  was  perfect.  The 

282 


O   FORTUNATE,    O   HAPPY  DAY 

dress  was  of  that  soft  silvery  white  only  to  be 
contrived  by  the  combination  of  satin  and  chiffon, 
and  Helen  looked  very  lovely. 

Behind  them,  a  dream  of  fairness,  walked 
Toinette.  Through  the  chiffon  of  her  gown  ran 
fine  golden  threads,  which  caused  it  to  glint  and 
glisten  as  the  sunbeams.  The  white  satin  under- 
neath was  of  that  peculiar  ivory  tint  which  com- 
bines so  exquisitely  with  gold  tints.  Her  hat 
was  made  of  the  chiffon,  and  trimmed  with 
Easter  lilies,  which  nestled  in  its  soft  folds  and 
against  the  beautiful  golden  hair  beneath  them. 
Her  basket  was  also  white,  and  she  was  a  fit- 
ting emblem  of  the  pure  soul  she  was  leading  to 
the  altar. 

Then  came  the  bride,  her  hand  resting  lightly 
upon  the  arm  of  the  friend  who  had  led  her 
along  the  greater  part  of  her  life's  pathway,  for 
Miss  Preston  had  been  Miss  Howard's  "  guide, 
philosopher  and  friend  "  almost  as  long  as  she 
could  remember.  Very  stately  did  she  look,  as 
she  walked  up  that  aisle  to  give  away  at  the  altar 

283 


CAPS    AND    CAPERS 

something  which  the  years  had  rendered  very 
precious  to  her,  for  sometimes  "  old  maids7  chil- 
dren "  are  more  dear  to  them  than  are  the  chil- 
dren who  claim  the  love  of  parents. 

Miss  Preston  was  very  proud  of  her  honors. 

But  no  words  can  describe  the  girl  who  walked 
at  her  side,  her  beautiful  face  made  transcend- 
ently  so  by  the  tenderest,  holiest  thought  that 
can  fill  a  woman's  heart :  that  she  is  about  to 
become  the  wife  of  the  man  she  loves.  She 
seemed  to  forget  the  church  and  all  who  were 
gathered  there  to  witness  her  happiness,  and  the 
soft,  dark  eyes  looked  straight  before  her  to  the 
altar,  where  her  husband  to  be  awaited  her,  as 
though  that  altar  was  to  her  as  the  entrance  to 
the  holy  of  holies  ;  as,  indeed,  it  was. 

How  brief  is  a  marriage  ceremony!  A  few 
words  are  spoken  and  two  lives  are  changed  for- 
ever, never  again  to  be  the  same  as  they  were 
less  than  ten  minutes  before,  but  filled  with  new 
duties,  new  obligations,  and  the  responsibilities 
we  must  all  assume  when  we  utter  the  words : 

284 


L 


"THE   BRIDE,    HER    HAM)    RESTING   LIGHTLY    ON   THE   ARM   OF   HEK 
FRIEND." 


O   FORTUNATE,    O    HAPPY   DAY 

"  I  will."     God  meant  that  it  should  be  so,  and 
it  is  one  of  this  world's  many  blessings. 

The  reception  Miss  Preston  gave  for  her 
"adopted  daughter,"  as  she  called  Miss  Howard, 
now  Mi's.  Chichester,  was  long  talked  over  by 
the  school,  and  quoted  by  the  girls  as  "our  recep- 
tion" for  months. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Chichester  sailed  for  Europe  on 
the  same  steamer  which  carried  Miss  Preston 
and  her  girls,  and  a  happier,  merrier  party  it 
would  have  been  hard  to  find.  Toinette  and 
Mr.  Reeve  went  to  bid  them  farewell  and  a 
pleasant  voyage,  and  the  last  faces  those  upon  the 
great  ship  saw  as  they  swung  out  into  the  stream 
were  Toinette's  and  her  father's. 

And  now  we,  too,  must  leave  them — leave 
them  to  the  happy  summer  vacation,  when  they 
learned  how  dear  they  were  to  each  other,  and 
what  a  dear  old  world  this  is,  after  all,  when  two 
people  mannge  to  look  at  it  through  little  Dan 
Cupid's  spectacles. 

287 


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